














»^ :^' J3> !:> ^T) y>:.^^^ ^^^^ 









-n?i>>?>.^ 












•^2 



>'5^»»:>X> '!P*II> ^■-^' 



I LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, #1 






I - i — #, 

t UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, f 
























<z €Z*<iccjGCsi^<3cz <:^ x: c c c < 

est: <^(' ^r CCM3 CM < CICCZCC 

ciac.<c< < cccc:_^-^ c^.^- ^ dec 

C C^CKCcc^cC .c:c«Ccc dc . CTcC dcc 

r'-c: cccjcEi^c dc <; dxc dec < 
c: <^d <^<:c: c ccM^:c< dc c dTcr dec t ^ 
d cd<ccc c eci^ec <i c czcc c c c c: ^ 

'^. ^ <^c:xd dccc:^^. 

OcCdC: dc<d<S^ ^'^^gd -d'- d <^<^ 




<iK!cr^c^<^ d 



<^ <z^ d Cijd'«^- c . / 

d d C$d<3Cl^^^ <^ ^ 



^SS^ dd C-c 
C C C <ZC. CS5 c 



- ■ -<dl c< ■ <l^''■ 

. cg<r<d^ ■ 



\ , a <( ' 

-.' <^<'d<< <c:: CCr 

d.ccidcd dec i 

^ cc Q^ crccc cc' 

.5^ec^c:ccc ec 

^SCc^Cdrd dc 
^dxxccc ec 






.<<£.. d 



d CC cCtL CST 



POLITICAL REMINISCENCES, 



INCLUDING 



A SKETCH 



OF THE 



©mi©im ^H® ®ig^©m'2' 



OF THE 



STATESMAN PARTY" 



OF 



\^ / BOSTON 



y/^^'-' 



BY ^^ 

y 



JOHN BARTON DERBY, 

LATE 

DEPUTY SURVEYOR OF THE CUSTOMS. 



" They (i. e. the office holders) love Gold."— G/o6e. 

" Their God is gold, and their Religion pell'.-'— «• T. Patne. 



Entered accord.ng to Act of Congress .n .he year .a.4. .„ the CierK'^ omc o. the Di.tnc. 

Court of Massachusettd. 




BOSTON : 

Primed for the Author, by Homer & Palmer, 
Congress-street. 

1835. 






TO THE 



TOUNG MSN, 



OP 



MASSACHUSETTS, 

AND OF THE 

UNITED STATES, 

These humble pages, are respectfully inscribed, by their fellow 
citizen, and obedient servant, 

THE AUTHOR» 



INTR013UCTI0N. 



The reader will readily perceive, that, in this 
work, the writer makes no pretensions to taste or 
refinement of style. He is a <' plain, blunt man;''— 
and having a plain statement to communicate to his 
fellow-citizens, he only " speaks right on." 

It will also be remarked, that many of his state- 
ments are, fr^ji their very nature, unsusceptible of 
proof, save Lj- liis solemn declaration. Conversations, 
between two persons only, can be proved but by one 
witness, and may be denied by the other. But the writer 
confides in the good sense of his countrymen to give 
him credit for veracity in some of his charges, when 
they discover many others, of a more serious charac- 
ter, for the truth of which be summons numerous and 
respectable witnesses. 

No man, says Hume, can speak long of himself 
without an exhibition of vanity. This is undoubtedly 
true, and 1 would fain avoid it. But in a narrative of 
transactions in which one acts a conspicuous part, I 
know not how he can clearly and forcibly impress his 
readers, without speaking much, too much of Jiimself, 
and liis agency therein. Pardon me, tlierefore, if I 
ap[)ear presumptuous or conceited. I am sufliciently 
humbled by the fttl-ors of my political course. It is 



no small sacrifice of vanity, for a man to confess, that 
eleven years of his life have been passed under a po- 
litical delusion. 

To the Jackson party, 1 say, that if thoughtless 
zeal, if peculiar sufferings, privations, and personal 
conflicts ; — if unceasing activity, and a total forgetful- 
ness of interest, continued for many years, in the 
cause which finally triumphed by the election of 
Jackson, merits their consideration and regard, 1 may 
presume to claim it. In the ardour of political ex- 
citement, 1 abandoned an honorable and lucrative 
profession, and plunged in reckless impetuosity into 
tlie arena of politics, spurning aside all my better 
hopes and prospects. My first unfortunate sally was 
made in 1823, and the cause was a profound contempt 
and disgust for the character of J. Q. Adams, then a 
candidate for the Presidency. On his nomination, 1 
stripped for the conflict, resolved never to quit the 
ring, until he was laid upon his back. It may be 
aske(i, wliy this excessive zeal ? Here is my answer. 

1 remembered the apostacy of Adams in 1807, his 
abandonment of the federal party, and his calumnious 
accusation of his own, and his father's political 
friends, of treasonable designs against the United 
States. The family to which I belong, was, at that 
time, among the most influential and respectable in 
New-England, and decidedly federal. I believed the 
charge to be false; — for, in my youth, while listening 
with boyish interest to the political discussions of our 
family circle, 1 learned the rejjuhlican i^rinciiJles 
which, ever since, have been the covenant of the re- 
publican ark. 

Again ; I had been told by a gentleman in whom I 



placed confidence, that Mr. Adams not only avowed, 
in his presence, his intention of deserting the federal 
party, but gave his reasons for that intention, viz: — to 
destroy tlie democratic party by uniting witli it, and 
leading it onward to such excesses, that all rational 
men would dread its continued supremacy. To tlic 
scorn 1 felt for his dastardly calumniation of his 
ancient friends, was thus added an imiueasuralde dis- 
gust and al>horrence ot" the treacliery he meditated 
against his new associates. 

Thus a sense of honor, self-respect, family pride, 
and patriotism, made me, in 1823, a i)artizan of 
CrawJ'oviL And when, in 1821, it pleased the Al- 
mighty to touch him witli his linger, and rebuke the 
aspirations of genius and ambition, the same senti- 
ments, ratlier brightened than rusted by the previous 
struggle, made me a partizan of General Jackson.- 
And he never had one more devoted and enthusiastic. 
1 further claim some consideration from the Jackson 
party, when they remember tliat in 182 1, and again in 
1828, I published, under my own signature, tlie above 
facts in relation to Mr. Adams ; and tiiat my <• state- 
ment was thought to iiavc materially contributed to 
the victory of Jackson over his antagonist.-' Thf 
vengeance of the Opposition, wliich fell iii»on me, in 
consequence, cannot be forgotten. It began in 1S21, 
and never ceased till 1829. For five years, I was 
forced to figlit my way tlirough a host of atrocious 
libels, private slanders, loss of professional business, 
and, for a time, loss of reputation. J5ut I triumphed 
over ray political assailants, and beheld beneath the 
rainbow of our hopes, Jackson ascending the steps of 
the Capitol ! 

At that moment, I could with truth, have said to 



him, " the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up." — 
For in the heat of the conflict, 1 had alienated my 
family and many of my friends, had expended all my 
limited means, neglected my professional duties, and, 
of course, lost my clients, and found myself ship- 
wrecked upon the very sands of the harbour, into 
which, 1 had aided the ship of State in entering, and 
riding therein in security, and glory. 

Nevertheless, I can recollect no moment of my life 
so full of keen delight, as that when the election of 
Jackson was ascertained. 

My readers, 1 humbly trust, will credit me when 1 
aver, that up to this period I had never once thought 
of an office, nor of any other reward of my exertions 
but the approbation of my own conscience. It was 
not until some of the most lucrative appointments were 
conferred upon men who had comparatively done and 
suffered nothing, — mere followers of the camp, — that 
I ventured to present my claims before the President, 
in July 1829. And on this subject I have a story to 
tell, wherein the young men of the State and Nation 
may read a lesson full of instruction and warning. 

1 received a subordinate office, (but not the one I 
had been promised.) and on the 20th April, 1830, re- 
paired to the Custom House, in Boston, as Deputy 
Surveyor. I soon found myself surrounded by men, 
claiming to lead the Jackson party of Massachusetts, 
who seemed to have no other object than their own 
emolument and advancement; — intriguing, greedy and 
intolerant: — and attempting to exercise the same des- 
potic control over the political opinions, as over the 
official conduct, of their dependants. In a short time, 
projects were advocated by them and afterwards 
carried into effect, tending to bring shame and con- 



tempt on a "''reform-^ Administration; — projects re- 
plete with extortion, corruption and baseness. With 
zeal and indignation I opposed them, and consequently, 
incurred their secret hut inveterate enmity. 

Although it was apparent that the President had 
been most grossly deceived in his appointments in this 
quarter, 1 still adhered to him with unshaken fidelity, 
defending his acts and lauding his virtues, in the 
newspapers open to such communications. And in 
Feb. 1831, when he was assailed by Mr. Calhoun in 
the famous << Correspondence," 1 wrote a review of 
that controversy hostile to the assailant and warmly 
advocating the President, which being refused publica- 
tion in the Boston Statesman, and the Gazette, ap- 
peared in the Washington Globe. 

At that time, there were not among the office holders 
in Boston half a dozen open friends of Jackson. The 
leaders of the party were mutely watching the cur- 
rent of public opinion, and nearly all their subordi- 
nates, of course, wagged their heads in silence. — 
When however it was ascertained that the President 
would triumph over liis great antagonist, they all join- 
ed in the general acclamation, and endeavoured to 
cover, by an inordinate zeal, their previous ingratitude 
to their benefactor. Were the few faithful, '< found 
among the faithless," sustained afterwards by the 
Government? No; — they were sacrificed to the su- 
perior political influence and wealth of the ingrates 
and traitors. They were sacrificed by the selfish and 
cold-blooded policy of Van Buren.* 

•Van Burea acknowledged afleQwordf, in Boston, that he was aaliBfied the 
Statesman party were, at this tiiiio, the friends ol Calhoun, but that they had 
rapenl«d, and wers necessary to future operations. 



8 

Could it liave reached me, I should have fallen with 
the rest; but 1 did not resist the impulse to tender, 
for the Jirst time, a resignation of my office. 

This most unjust and cruel transaction, did not de- 
tach me from the cause of the President, nor diminish 
my confidence in his honor and magnanimity. Pur- 
suaded that he was in utter ignorance of the facts, and 
that a few of his faithless advisers, (to whom they 
had been communicated,) were alone its authors, X 
still continued his firm and ardent friend. 

And such I remained, until a band of conspirators, 
seized upon the occasion of his visit to Boston and his 
temporary illness and imbecility, to persuade him to 
lay violent hands on the public treasure, and to trans- 
fer it, in this quarter, into the custody of government 
officers removable from office at his pleasure. A most 
impolitic, disastrous, and fatal proceeding ! Impolitic, 
because, it gave the U. States Eank a new and far 
stronger ground of contention ; and was calculated to 
bring about the very thing it was designed to prevent, 
viz : — the re-charter of the Bank. Disastrous, be- 
cause it shed dismay and ruin on the enterprising and 
industrious classes. Fatal, because it was the occa- 
sion of the subsequent "Protest" denouncing the 
Senate, (one of the three equal powers of the Govern- 
ment,) and asserting an authority in the President re- 
pugnant to the Constitution and dangerous to liberty. 
Fatal to the fame of Jackson as a champion of popular 
rights ; to the party that elected him, by converting 
all the advocates of such regal prerogative into Tories ; 
and, perhaps, to the great Charter of the Confederacy, 
by inflicting a wound that can never be healed. 

In the following pages, I shall give some facts and 



9 

suggestions that may possibly throw new liglit on this 
rash and alarming assumption of power. It may yet 
be discovered, tliat the whole was the work of a sinirle 
individual's malice and revenge. 

1 have, for many years, been opposed to the re- 
charter of the U. S. 13ank, and subscribed the Boston 
Anti-liauk Memorial to Congress ; — but, because 1 
would not add an approval of the seizure of the de- 
posites, some tory miscreant (tories are always ene- 
mies of freedom of opinioji,) erased my signature, and 
it was not printed in the Memorial. 1 was also against 
any U. S. Bank, but Mr. Benton's speeches and the 
late fatuity of the Globe on the subject of gold — which 
means only Dutch gilding — cured me of that egregious 
error. A gold currency is the currency of despotic 
governments with an impoverished and ignorant popu- 
lation. Wherever we find credit, and a paper curren- 
cy payable in the precious metals, there will be found 
also liberal institutions, an enterprising people, and a 
flourishing commerce. Napoleon, (says the Globe,) 
gave France a gold currency. If we are to be cursed 
with an American Napoleon, without doubt he will 
tread in the footsteps of his exemplar. 

To resume the thread of tiiis comjiendious narrative. 
During 1833, in consequence of tlie incessant and 
virulent attacks made upon a friend in a high station 
in the Custom House, by his official brethren, and for 
other causes to be named hereafter, I, a second time 
tendered a resignation of my office. I liad become 
disgusted with the intolerable duty required of me, 
with the ( ontinually increasing corruption, and with 
the heartless reception of tiie devotedness with which 
1 sacrificed myself for other's advantage. So that in 



10 

April 1834, prostrated, by the invasion of an hereditary 
complaint of the heart, brought on by the excessive 
labour and confinement of the first years of my official 
duties ; — by the dissipation of the political illusion 
that had so long beguiled me ; by the ''^ serpent tooth"' 
of ingratitude; by the violation of all my feelings and 
principles, — I was forced to exchange the condition of 
a slave for that of a freeman, but with all my pros- 
pects in life blasted and apparently hopeless. 

In the following pages 1 shall not, of the numerous 
letters received from the leaders of the Jackson party, 
publish a single word. Private correspondence will 
be sacred in my hands, unless some mercenary or vin- 
dictive assailant compels me to expose his own, or that 
of his employers. Copies of my own letters, in ex- 
planation of facts, 1 shall take leave to use as I think 
proper. 

At an age, when I ought to have laid the founda- 
tions of future independence, I find myself depressed 
in spirit and impoverished in circumstances. Yet my 
example may be incalculably beneficial to the genera- 
tions who follow. Let the young men learn, that any 
useful occupation is infinitely better than the business 
of politics or official preferment ; — and that a reliance 
on men, in their political attachments, is but leaning 
upon a broken reed ; — vfhWe. principle s, both in poli- 
tics and morals, are unbending and eternal. 

This is the moral of my story. J. B. 1). 

Boston, Sept. 1834. 



CHAPTER I. 



Origin of the Statesman Party. 



" Go thou, and like an Executioner, 
" Cut oiT the heads of too fast-growing sprays, 
" That look too lofty in our commonwealth : 
" All must be even in our government." 



In 1824, there were four candidates for the Presidency, viz: — 
W. H. Crawlord nominated by a portion of the democraticmcm- 
bers of Congress, — J. Q. Adams by the New-England States, — 
General Jackson by Pennsylvania and part of the West, and 
Henry Clay by Kentucky and other Western States. 

In Massachusetts, a great majority of the moderate men of both 
the old federal and republican parties united in favor of Mr. 
Adams. But a considerable Crawford party soon appeared, 
formed by an amalgamation of high-toned federalists and radical 
democrats ; — the federalists actuated by personal aversion to 
Adams, and the democrats by an anxiety to sustain the precedent 
of Caucus nominations. Of this party I am inclined to believe 
that the federalists constituted the greater pari, but as Mr. 
Crawford was held up in Virginia and some other Southern 
States as the regular democratic candidate, it became politic for 
the party here to march under the same standard ; and thus was 
brought forward into the front rank a set of men who. but for this 
circumstance, would probably have never been heard of as leadin"- 
politicians. 

In proof of the extent of federal influence in the Crawford 
party of Massachusetts, read the following extracts from a circular 
letter distributed, in Oct. 1824, throughout the State. 

At a numerous and respectable meeting of Federal Republicans, nt 
the Supreme Court Room, Boston, convened l«y n notice in tliR news- 

Sapers, last evening, (18th Oct. inst.) the following Preamble and 
Resolutions were adopted unanimously: 

To the Federal Republicans of Massachusetts.'^ 

FEIjLQW-CITIZENH. — A number of your j)oli[ical friends as- 
sembled on a sudden call, mado throiii,'h the newspaperu this morning, 
of Federalists opposed to a pledged ticket of electors, beg leave to ex- 



12 

press to you their opinions on the subject of the approaching election 
of a President of the Union. The election of a chief magistrate is 
surely among the most important rights of freemen ; but for many 
years past we have had so little share in such elections, that we seem 
to have become indifferent to the subject. — There is certainly a division, 
however unequal, in the opinions of the Federal Republicans, as to 
the qualifications of the several Candidates, and probably for that 
reason they had declined to act on this occasion as a distinct body. — 
While we respect the principles which have induced this forbearance 
lest offence should be given to some of our friends, we cannot conceal 
the fact that there has appeared a general and decided hostility to the 
pledged ticket, and we believe that at the polls a very great majority 
of the Federalists will act with us. 

About five or six hundred voters are now present, and they form but 
a part of those in the city who feel, think and will act in union with 
us. And we declare that whenever we have witnessed an appeal on 
this subject to unbought and unpledged men, we have seen one general 
burst of indignation against the proceedings of the placemen who se- 
lected for public approbation a list of electors, who before they could 
be received as candidates, were obliged to surrender ttieir voices to the 
cabal who appointed them, and thus bind themselves slavishly to de- 
clare the will of others, instead of exercising the proud and honorable 
prerogative of free and independent electors. 

SAMUEL L. KNAPP, Chairman. 

GEORGE G. CHANNING, Secretary. 

The following were chosen a Committee of Correspondence, agree- 
ably to one of the above resolutions, viz: — Mden Bradford, Henry H. 
Fuller, Dr. Benjamin Shurtleff, James C. Merrill, Samuel Henshaw, 
Benjamin R. Nichols, Henry Williams, George Morey, Jr. Charles 
Barnard, and Ninian C. Betton, Esquires. 

The pledged Ticket was the Adams ticket, the unpledged the 
Crawford ticket. The Electoral Ticket supported by the Crawford 
party, was composed, with few exceptions, of old Federalists. 

The Hon. Jonatlian Russell was unquestionably the leading 
man of the Crawford party in this State, and conducted the 
contest with an ability deserving of a more happy result. 

But among the leading democratic members in Boston, were 
Uavid Henshaw, then a druggist and apothecary, now Collector 
ot" tlie Port, with a salary and perquisites of about S5000 per 
annum. Andrew Dunlap, a lawyer, in small business, now 
District Attorney, fees (supposed) from 2 to 3000 dollars a year. 
John K. Simpson, an upholsterer, now Pension Agent and Deputy 
Treasurer of the U. States, (as President of a Pet Bank;) — pay 
supposed from S to 6000 dollars. Daniel D. Brodhead, then a 
Merchant-Tailor, now Navy Agent, pay probably §4000. — 
Nathaniel Greene, then Printer of a weekly newspaper called 



13 

the Statesman, now Post Master of Boston, pay about 6000 
dollars per year. C. G. Greene, was of so green an age that I 
cannot remember whether he had then been initiated into the 
mysteries of party, but if so, he was a printer; — now contractor 
for " twine, blanks, ike." at over 29,000 dollars per two years. 

The two first gentlemen were the principal writers for the 
newspaper printed by Greene, and his printing office was the 
scene of the political consultations of this august body; — hence 
they took the name of the ** Statesman party." 

Other gentlemen, of much superior talents, attainments and 
influence, were members of the party; — but the little faction 
above named, finally succeeded, by a combination among them- 
selves, in obtaining under Jackson, to tlie exclusion of the rest, 
every lucrative office in Boston in the gift of the President, and 
in distributing among their partisans, relatives, and debtors, in 
town and country, nearly all the other appointments of le.^s 
emoluments. 

Of tlie private characters of these men I have nothing to say, 
and shall confine myself to their public and political stations, 
characters, and conduct. 

At the period of whicii I have been speaking, Mr. David 
Henshaw was remarkable for nothing but an active and money- 
getting industry, a piofessedlv deep-rooted hostility to the aris- 
tocracy, (so called,) which usually means all who are richer than 
ourself, and an enthusiastic admiration of Napoleon Buoiia|)arte. 
He has since swelled to a tremendous greatness, of which 1 shall 
treat hereafter. 

Mr. Dunlap was noted for his immeasurable abhorrence of the 
Hartford Convention ; — it was his cloud by day and pillar of fire 
by night; — the beginning and end of all his public speeches and 
newspaper paragraphs. lie furnished most of the /(/<'«.< for the 
newspaper, which Henshaw reduced to form. In truth he was 
and is the most radical and intolerant democrat I ever encoun- 
tered. " Impiger, iracundus, inexorabili3,acer;" — rush, wrathful, 
vindictive, and daring, — as a politician. I shall allude to liim 
agait). 

Mr. John K. Simpson, — better known among the party as 
'' Johnny K" This personage is the miniature Van Buren of 
the associates, — soft, s«ly, and insinuating, — never losing sight of 



14 

his own interests and advancement; — intent upon the fees but 
careless of the honors of office ; — and accomplishing all his po- 
litical projects by some manoeuvre and intrigue. Indeed, so 
natural to him is this, that I doubt whether he can blow his nose 
without a stratagem. He however makes himself extremely 
useful as a member ; is peculiarly active and successful in col- 
lecting affidavits when it becomes necessary to trip up the heels 
of a refractory office-holder; in drilling the democratic members 
of the State Legislature; in preparing the "cut and dried" 
measures to be passed by all Caucuses and Conventions under 
the " Statesman" jurisdiction ; and in managing a change of 
front, if it becomes expedient to abandon a great Candidate for 
office when his prospects grow cloudy. His political conversation 
is in whispers and by the button, with an eye continually watchful 
of eaves-droppers and spies. And although he sometimes man- 
ages to dupe his associates and effect his own schemes while 
apparently promoting theirs, yet his peculiar qualities have ren- 
dered him a great favorite of the Statesman faction. By the sale 
of feathers he made himself rich, and as Deputy Treasurer of the 
U. States, beyond all question, he will thoroughly "-feather his 
nest." If Van Buren is elected President he should make him 
Grand Chamberlain of the household. 

Mr. Daniel D. Brodhead. Of this important personage I know 
but little. It is said, however, that having been a Clerk of the 
Navy Office under the late Amos Binney, Esq. (whom Amos 
Kendall hunted so unmercifully, in his '• black list;") he has a 
sharp look out to the main chance; and, also, that while a mer- 
chant tailor, he produced very tolerable "fits." This gentleman 
affects the profound politician, and reasons high in oracular lan- 
guage, but it is only " vox, et preterea nihil" — voice, and not 
much else. With all his close political calculations, he happened 
to be caught at the great " National Tariff Convention," not long 
before the last Presidential election, although I think that he 
toasted Mr. Calhoun, at a public dinner, a few years before, with 
great vehemence But perhaps, as the political atmosphere 
looked rather squally at that moment, a seat in that Convention 
was not a bad move, since in the event of Mr. Clay's success, it 
might just have been mentioned as a passport to his favour. He 
obtained the office of Navy Agent by a majority of one vote, 17 



15 

to IG, — niaiiv Seiuitors beii)g absent. Ami tliere are certain facts 
connected with his appointment, and certain other matters in 
which he has been concerned, tliat will oblige me to call him up 
again. 

Mr. Nathaniel Greene. I knew him in 1824 as merely of the 
firm of True Sc Gvcp.ne, printers of the Statesman, and from that 
time to 1829, never sus|)ected him of tvritiiig a single important 
article or even a paragraph, for the paper. The cause of his 
appointment as Post Master was. for a time, wholly unaccount- 
able, but it at last transpired. He has since figured in so many 
extraordinary transactions illustrative of political character, to be 
detailed in the following pages, that I will for the present snspend 
any further remarks, trusting to introduce him with greater effect 
hereafter. 

And as his brother, Mr. C. G. Greene, had not then attracted 
much notice, I shall leave him until the period, when he burst 
suddenly upon his astonished party, in the meridian splendor of 
Ciceronean glorv. 

Such was the origin and such were the leaders of the famous 
•* Statesman party" of Boston ; — a party that for a long period 
kept itself aloof and disconnected from every other pcirty ])ursu- 
ing tiie same political ends, repelling all interlopers and over- 
throwing all rivals; — maintaining no friendships except with each 
other, but eagerly accepting the fruits of other men's labours; — 
veering with every breeze apparently disastrous to their patrons 
and benefactors, — secret, persevering and indefatigable in the 
prosecution of their selfish objects, until they manaijed to share 
among themselves nearly every government appointment in Eos- 
ton connected with profits and patronage I 

And these are the men, who vow, fearing the loss of their 
enormous salaries by the defeat of Van Buren, arc struggling, 
with a hope of success, to get our State Government into their 
hands, so that Henshaw may be a Senator in Congress, J)unlap a 
Judge of our Supreme Court, Simpson Sheriff of Sutlolk, Brod- 
head Register of Probate, and the two Greene's Adjutant General 
and State Printer, leaving the minor offices of the Commonwealth 
to be scrambled for by the cuiinlnj members of the party. 

Some of my readers, knowing the men, may smile at this as- 
sertion : but I can tell them, that smile of incredulity may be 



16 

chanf-ecl to a o-roan. Thev who have obtained, in a manner unex- 
pected and incomprehensible to themselves, high, responsible, 
and most lucrative offices from the Government of the U. States, 
look upon the petty offices of the State as their proper and rightful 
possessions ; — fit asylums for veteran democratic Jacksonians. 



CHAPTER II. 



The Election of 1824. 



Under which King, Bezonian ?" 



Gentle Reader; — do not suppose that my knowledge of the 
political characters of the " Statesman" faction was intuitive ? — 
Alas! for many years, being at a distance from the "Literary 
Emporium,*' we had but little intercourse; — and as they thun- 
dered in the van of the Crawford party, and made up in clamor 
what they wanted in respectability, I recognized them as being 
what they seemed. It was a closer intimacy, a residence in 
Boston, and official connections, that proved them utterly un- 
worthy of respect and confidence. Previous to that time, (as 
will be shown in these pages,) I appeared as their zealous and 
disinterested friend in a crisis which threatened the entire pros- 
tration of their power, and the triumph of their rivals. 

All of 1823, and most of '24, I lived in one of the secluded 
but beautiful villages of Norfolk County, distinguished for the 
industry and intelligence of its inhabitants. Here a republican 
population of farmers and mechanics, met each night, after the 
labours of the day, for mutual instruction and enjoyment. Every 
man contributed his mite, or his talent, to the general information ; 
and by this free discussion, two-thirds of the votes declared for 
the Crawford ticket. Never shall I cease to remember the gen- 
erous spirit, the enlightened intelligence, the disinterested patron- 



17 

age, of the people of Mcdtield. " Sweet Auburn, loveliest vil- 
lage of the plain!" The vote in this town in Nnv. 1824, was for 
the Crawford Ticket 70, Adams 30. I believe that only three 
other towns in Massachusetts gave majorities against Adams. 

In the Summer of 1824, there appeared in the Boston States- 
man certain severe and eloquent writings, by " One of the Peo- 
ple^" stigmatizing the political course of Mr. Adams and ardently 
opposing his election. I soon ascertained that the Hon. Jonathan 
Russell was the writer. In an interview with that gentleman, 
he requested me not to expose any knowledge of the author ; ' 
and, faithful to my promise, I involved myself in a labyrinth of 
difficulties materially affecting my interests and future prospects. 
Since his decease, I have thought myself absolved from that 
promise. These writings have been attributed to me, and in 
consequence, I have been compelled to bear unmerited honors 
from one side, and the most vindictive persecution from the other. 

I communicated to Mr. Russell the facts in my possession rela- 
tive to Mr. Adams's apostacy, and his probable designs on the 
democratic party, and was somewhat surprised to find them in- 
corporated in the next number of " one of the people." And it 
is remarkable, that, to this very important charge against the 
political integrity of Mr. Adams, not a single newspaper in his 
interest, in this or any other State, uttered, at the time, a word 
of denial or defence. Some six months afterwards, when Mr. A. 
had been signally defeated by the votes of the people, and it was 
apparent that the election depended on Congress, the National 
Journal demanded of the Statesman proof of the charge. My 
name, without any previous consultation with me, was immedi- 
ately ushered before the public. In this situation, I drew up, 
in the form of an affidavit, all the facts within rnj knowledge ; — 
which was sustained by the certificate of a gentleman of high 
standing and respectability. It was published in the Statesman 
on 9th November. Although I had asserted in the affidavit that 
I was not the author of " One of the People," this availed me 
nothing witli the zealots of the Adams party, and a most furious 
personal attack appeared in one of their Boston newspapers. I 
should have prosecuted the writer, but was restrained by paren- 
tal advice and authority ; — so I contented myself with publishing 
»n answer in the Statesman The concluding passage of that 



18 

answer I must be permitted to insert here, because it goes to 
show that I was actuated by no interested views, and also, that 
even then, I had a foresight of the future success of Jackson. 
Let it be remembered, that Mr. Crawford's lamentable illness 
was notorious, and that his friends considered his prospects 
desperate. 

" I have nothing to gain, nothing to hope for, no interested 
" views, in opposing the election of John Q. Adams. But I have 
" done what I thought my duty with ardor, but not with intem- 
" perate zeal, and whether my conduct receives praise or con- 
" demnation, I care not. The time is at hand, even at the dooVy 
'' when the small minority in JIassuchusetts,most of whom I truly 
" believe acted from the most pure and conscientious motives, ivill 
" rank with the great majority of their countrymen. The hand 
" writing is upon the ivail — let the seers interpret." 

I have letters in my possession proving, that at this early pe- 
riod, my hopes reposed on Jackson. These things have only 
become matters of moment of late years when so much has been 
said about '• eleventh hour men," although now, both the '* eleventh 
hour" and the early dawn labourers have been discarded, and the 
fruits of their labours have been given to those who came into the 
vineyard just before sunset. 

Let us now look after the little Cabal in Boston, who have 
since had the impudence to style themselves the " earliest" 
friends of Jackson, and the "Spartan Band of Democracy, in 
Massachusetts." So far from being friends of Jackson, up to the 
final election of Adams they had not ceased to ridicule his pre- 
tensions, both in conversation and in their newspaper, " Hell is 
as fit for a powder house as Jackson for President," said one of 
the most refined and eminent of the confederates. Even the aid 
of '' poesy" was summoned to the purpose of pouring contempt 
on the " Hero of New-Orleans ;" — the loftiest strain of which, 
retained in remembrance, is the following from the Statesman :— 

" Quincy Adams who can slang, 
" Andrew Jackson who can hang." 

There are multitudes in Boston who recollect that the bitterness 
of the Statesman party against Jackson, at this time, was quite 
equal to that which tliey manifested against Adams. 

" Spartan Band of Democracy !" Never was a more false and 



19 

absurd claim set up by any party. For two years they had been 
amalgamated with federalists of the " straitest sect," and had 
cast their votes for an electoral ticket composed of high toned 
federalists, with merely a slight infusion of democracy. And 
I aided in mingling even this, by voting, (as a delegate to a 
Crawford Convention at Dedham on 19th Sept. 1824.) for Hon. 
Benj. Reynolds as the Norfolk Candidate for Elector. 

But the real principle of combination among the Statesman 
party soon became apparent ; — the " loaves and fishes" of office 
was their only bond of union. 

After the election of J. Q. Adams by the Representatives of 
the States, he immediately proceeded to strengthen his party by 
treaties witli his late opponents. The appointment of Secretary 
of State was supposed to have conciliated Mr. Clay and his 
friends. There was then a general impression that the Crawford 
party were next to be taken into favour, in order to array a com- 
manding force against the most formidable of his antagonists, — 
Gen. Jackson. Like a wary politician Mr. Adams left his inten- 
tions for a time doubtful, with the expectation, probably, of dis- 
tracting the mercenary adherents of both Crawford and Jackson, 
and attaching them to his Administration. This policy had the 
desired effect on the "Band" in Boston. The Statesman, soon 
after the election of Adams, instead of proving an opponent of 
the "corrupt bargain," and the "earliest" advocate of Jackson, 
was giving the leer of invitation for an alliance with the reigning 
power, mingled with menace in case of non-compliance; — it held 
in one hand a tomahawk, and in the other a treaty of peace with 
the usual "annuities." And so clearly was this amicable dispo- 
sition perceived by the Adams party in Boston, that Mr. David 
Henshaw was elected on a federal ticket, a State Senator, and 
Mr. John K. Simpson a Representative, by that very party, which 
they have since so constantly pretended to scorn and abominate ! 

Had Mr. Adams then turned the light of his countenance on 
these humble but earnest efforts for a share of his natronase. 
beyond a doubt the Statesman party would have been among his 
scattered host in 1828. But he could not overcome his antipathy 
to Massachusetts federalism, and in a hesitating attempt to ex- 
hibit a preference of Jacksonmen to Crawfordmen, he lost both 
parties, which immediately coalesced against him. This event 



20 

was a forerunner of his defeat, as every politician of common 
shrewdness instantly discovered. And tlien, for the first time, 
rose from the ranks of the democratic " Spartans" the ominous 
crv. " Huzzah for Jackson." 

But let us investigate their claim to democracy a little 
further. 

Every reader of the Statesman, for a few years past, has no- 
ticed the ecstacv of wrath which inflamed it, — the aangreHe that 
seized upon it, whenever it had occasion to mention Mr. Quincy's 
resolution in the Senate of Massachusetts during the last war, 
viz: — "that it was unbecoming a moral and religious people to 
rejoice in our victories over the public enemy." The resolution 
was indeed the extreme of political insanity. But what shall we 
think of men claiming to be the very "pinks" of democracy, — 
original, wool-dyed, inflexible, and immaculate, who, (ten years 
after the war, when the passions had cooled, and reason and prin- 
ciple ought to have resumed their control,) actually made a feast 
in Boston to celebrate the surrender, during the war, of a whole 
army, and a portion of the territory of the U. States, to an inferior 
force of the enemy ? After such a deed, what astounding impu- 
dence, for a man to claim to be a democrat ! And what mon- 
strous injustice, for such men to be continually vituperating the 
conscientious opponents of that war in New-England, when they 
themselves, assisted in conferring /lonoj's on one whom a Court 
martial and a democratic President considered deserving of death, 
for inflicting such disgrace on the country! Yet if my readers 
will consult the files of the Statesman, or the Centinel, of June 
1825, they will find a particular account of a public festival in 
Boston, given to General Hull, who for the surrender of his 
army, at Detroit, and the territory of Michigan, to a small force 
of British and Indians, at the commencement of the war, was 
subsequently condemned by a Court martial to be shot; — which 
sentence President Madison approved, but remitted its execution. 
Among the Vice-Presidents of the day, at this glorious celebra- 
tion, they will find the names of Dtivid Henshaw and John K. 
Simpson — the Castor and Pollux of the Statesman parly. And 
we have their " sentiments" also, wherein we discover no mincing 
of matters, but open, palpable, and right-down, Hartford-Con- 
ventionism. 



21 * 

" By David Henshaw, Ksq. The public voice — Americans are 
*' too honest to sacrifice the innocent to screen the guilty." 

Mr. Simpson was, as usual, a little less direct and plump to 
the purpose; — rather more flowery, — but equally conclusive. 

" By John K. Simpson. The survivivs: officers of the Conti- 
" nental war — Sub>cqucnt misfortunes have not withered the 
" laurels won by them in the Revolution, nor tarnished the cord 
" which binds them to their nei{>;hbours and fellow-citiy.ens !" 

No, my "/ca^/jcrcf/ Mercury," the "cord" still binds you to 
tory principles, and you will strive in vain to break it. 

Now, I apprehend, that my democratic readers require no 
further comment on this most extraordinary exhibition of " old, 
Spartan, radical, unwavering, and genuine democracy !" 

Disgusted with such shameless coniluct, — with the total aban- 
donment of political principle by the Statesman leaders, and 
their base hankering after office, I resumed my professional 
vocations with zeal and success. For several years, the party 
paper* was a wretched and feeble bantling, ready to be deposited 
on any wealthy statesman's door-stone who would yield it pro- 
tection and sustenance. But, to the honor of New-England, no 
one was found willing to assume its paternity. The friends of 
Jackson in my county scouted it as a '" cow-boy" of all parties, 
roaming over " neutral ground." With opinions unchanged, and 
our confidence of the ultimate triumph of our political leader 
unimpaired, we impatiently awaited the dawn of a brighter day. 

It came at last. The measures of Adams's Administration, 
by their temporising and imbecile character, invited opposition 
and gave a presage of future conquest. Clay was the only 
statesman in the Cabinet who united to great genius the boldness 
which could alone have saved a minority President. But he 
suffered his genius to be rebuked by Mr, Adams, and evinced 
such an inordinate anxiety to exonerate himself from the dis- 
honourable imputations of his adversaries, that many who were 
at first incredulous, begun at last to think "there must be some- 
thing in it." Experience seems to have proved in this country, 
that a distinguished statesman ought never to notice the accusa- 
tions of his political opponents, however false and atrocious. JSo 



• The Boilon StatcBinan. 



22 

loug as he is silent, the people consider such charges as only the 
usual lies of the newspapers ; — but the moment wounded honor, 
or self-respect, impels him to defy his accuser, then an impression 
is created that the arrow has hit him in a tender place. Who 
ever heard of Isaac Hill putting himself on his defence, or chal- 
lenging an investigation either popular or judicial, — unless, in- 
deed, some one had been whipping him, and then the "damages" 
make a very ditFerent case. No matter what accusation is level- 
led at his popularity, he has only quietly to say to his humble 
followers — "a federal lie," and there 's an end of it. And thus 
Hill has, for years, as despotically ruled in New-Hampshire as 
Dr. Francia ever did in Paraguay. Any man who is troubled 
with a nice sense of honor, and a keen sensibility to disgrace, 
should avoid public life as he would the cholera. It strikes me 
that the only way to rise in public station is this; — pay no regard 
to the clamours of your opponents, but bend all your energies to 
undermining every political friend who is either above you, or 
impedes your progress. The general acclamations always wait 
on him who clears the ring. How many friendly official heads 
have flown off, since Mr. Van Buren aimed at the Presidency ! 
He knows how such matters ought to be managed. But this is a 
digression. 



CHAPTER III. 



The Election of 1S28. 

" Now is the winter of our discontent 
" Made glorious summer. * » » 

*• Now are our brows bound with victorious wreaths." — Shakspears 
" Oh ! blindness to tlie future !" — Pope. 

By the beginning of 1827, everything announced the impending 
downfall of the Adams Administration. In vain had the Presi- 
dent proposed magnificent schemes of internal improvement and 
national grandeur ; in vain had he projected a splendid alliance 
with the sister republics of South America, then struggling for 
freedom. Cupidit) could not be bribed, nor even the spirit of 
liberty flattered, to his purposes. He had no personal popularity ; 
that talisman — whose power we have recently felt, — which ren- 
ders the approach of despotism invisible, and extorts, from an 
infatuated people, triumphant acclamations at every blow which 
lops oft" a limb from tiie Constitution. 

Had Mr. Adams acted on the principles which he professed to 
believe, viz: — radical democracy ; had he waved the services of the 
statesmen who composed his Cabinet, (with the exception of Rush.) 
and called into his councils an inferior order of men "unknown 
to fame;" — had he driven out all the public officers as plunderers 
and aristocrats, and filled their places with a fresh, more hungry, 
and more incompetent band of retainers, — he would have served 
out his eight years, and have been followed to his retirement by 
the blessings of his party. For it is the naturul and inevitable 
consequence of universal suffrage, that, every few years, a ne\y 
party rises up, more radically democratic than its predecessors, 
to push them from their places. The republican principles of 
the revolution are not the republican principles of the present 
day, and those who achieved that revolution are now considered, 
by some, " little better than tories." It has been the fashion of 
late years to laud Mr. Jefferson as the "father of democracy ;" — 



24 

but in less than twenty years from this time, I apprehend, he 
will be numbered with the ignorant and aristocratic statesmen of 
an age of political darkness. We see the operation of an exten- 
sion of the right of suffrage in England ; — for no sooner had the 
"reform bill" passed, than William Cobbett walked into Par- 
liament, — a man whom " England had twice vomited out on the 
shores of America, and America had twice vomited back again." 
But it requires no spirit of prophecy to foretell, that if this 
wretch lives ten years longer, he may think himself fortunate if 
he does not lose his head as an aristocrat. And in this country, 
we have remarked, that President Jackson, beckoning for the 
popular applause, first expressed a gentle disapprobation of the 
present Bank of the U. States, but at the same time proposed 
another on dift'erent principles. In a short time after, driven 
beyond the bounds of rational opinion by the clamor of his par- 
tizans, he was forced to condemn all National Banks. The next 
step was, of necessity, the condemnation of all Banks, State and 
National, and all paper currency, and the substitution of gold 
and silver. And in all probability, he will finally be compelled 
to anathematize gold and silver, and reduce the country to the 
currency of the patriarchal age, when the husbandman exchanged 
his corn for the oil of his neighbour. 

This tendency to radicalism is so certain and immutable, that 
a defeated party has only to assume more agrarian sentiments 
than its victors, to regain its power and brand them as aristocrats. 
1 know I am digressing, — but 1 cannot refrain from suggesting 
these veracious and useful considerations to the young and as- 
piring politician. Let my youthful reader, intent on oflBcial pre- 
ferment, be advised, that his success depends entirely on the 
absurdity of his opinions. General Washington could not now 
compete with Amos Kendall ! 

Where will this regular declension end? Whenever a popular 
President, mistaking the roar of a few hair-brained fanatics for 
the voice of the people, surrenders himself to the guidance of 
radical and mercenary counsellors, and by his acts endangers the 
security of property, then, (if the country has been prosperous.) 
they who have something to lose will out-number and out-vote 
those who have nothing. I place no great stress on the love of 
liberty; it is quite a feeble passion in our times, and is nearly 



• 25 

merged in a luve of gain. We have borne more from Jackson 
than our fathers did from George the third 1 If Van Buren does 
not become alarmed at the growing discontent of the people, and 
retrace his steps, we may look forward with some hope, that, in 
1836, the Constitution will be rescued from beneath tlie feet of 
those wlio are now trampling upon it. But if, (which Heaven 
forbid !) he succeeds on llie principles now set up by his followers, 
then the dynastv will be continued in Amos Kendall ; — and Isaac 
Hill will be Minister to the Court of St. James, — no, I beg par- 
don, to the Lord Protector of England, — at present one of the 
" operatives" at Manchester. 

Mr. Adams attempted to revive the principles of his father's 
Administration, — to go back to old times, — regardless of the po- 
litical deterioration of the country. Of course, his doom was 
sealed. He never changed his politics notwithstanding his pro- 
fessions, and his administration was as federal as his father's. 
Yet he aft'ected the plain republican, but erroneously supposed, 
with the '• Statesman party," that republicanism consisted in de- 
nouncing *' ruffled shirts" and decent apparel. The '' labarum" 
of democracy, in their view, seems to have been the eel-skin cue, 
worn by the Cape-Cod-nien, about the period of the Revolution. 
But times have altered — and the editor of the Statesman who for- 
merly waged a terrible war against ruffled shirts, now, since the 
"twine, blanks, ike." contract, sports as magnificent a ruffle and 
as fashionable a coat as any of his neighbours. 

Mr. Adams, under this absurd impression, visited the paternal 
mansion in the summer of 1828, decorated with a jockey cap, 
a dimity short jacket, white overhauls and kid pumps. I never 
shall forget his appearance as he rode through the streets of 
Dedham, on horseback, — nor the mortification and scorn express- 
ed in the countenances of his friends. Hostile as I was to him 
in political matters, 1 must say that I truly pitied both him and 
them. 

There is an anecdote related of this " avatar" and the singular 
costume in which it was performed, that I believe to be authentic. 
Before arriving at one of the Taveins in Walpole, Mr. A. had 
mounted on horseback, and placed his groom in the carriage 
which followed in the rear. On drawing up before the portico, 
an oRtler, in a clean frock, wlio had been expecting the arrival of 



26 • 

the President of the U. States, administered water to the horses 
of the carriage with profound respect, turning an eye of reveren- 
tial awe on the gentleman who was within. The real President, 
who sat on his blowed charger, finding himself likely to be ne- 
glected, says " water mij horse, Sir." To which Mr. ostler, with 
a look of indignant contempt at his dress and appearance, replied 
" d n you. water him yourself, — that's your business." 

Finding the battle going against him, and the odious stigma of 
federalism fixed on himself and his administration, Mr. Adams 
made a last desperate effort to retrieve his fortunes by leading to 
the charge his ''old guard," vix: — his false accusation, against the 
former federalists of Massachusetts, of treasonable designs 
against the U. States He probably supposed that as they had 
hitherto sufi'ered the charge in silence, the same passiveness 
would be continued. But unfortunately for him, the leading 
federalists of Massachusetts thought that a calumny uttered by 
a private citizen seeking for office, and by a President of the U. 
States, were very different matteis. They answered him in a 
solemn and affecting appeal to all the generous feelings of the 
heart, conjuring him to designate any one of their number who 
had been either principal or accessary in so base a design- As 
he could not do this without subjecting himself to a prosecution 
as a libeller, Mr. Adams shrunk from the challenge, and suff"ered 
the double misery of perceiving his poisoned arrow returned with 
fatal effect into his own bosom, and of dying a political death 
with "a lie in his mouth." But I know that many of these 
abused and illustrious citizens, with a magnanimity and virtue 
almost unknown in these degenerate days, believing that love of 
country ought to subdue every personal feeling, actually gave 
their votes for their calumniator ! 

We will now look in upon our friends of the Statesman party. 
While the chances were favourable to Mr. Adams' re-election, 
we have seen them mining for his favour. But when his star 
besran to wane and Jackson's to rise " lord of the ascendant," 
thev turned towards its cheering beams their servile homage. I 
well remember, that sometime in 1827, sitting in my office in 
conversation with my late lamented i'riend Ames, Mr. Nathaniel 
Greene, printer of the Statesman, made his appearance. His 
business was to extend the circulation of his paper. We entered 



27 

into his views, remarking, however, that h? must take more de- 
termined ground ; that Iti* paper had been loo tame and luke- 
warm, whereas the times required Ijoldness and energy. Ho 
replied, that " the party" intended to take fhat course in future, 
and I then promised to supply him with an occasional "article," 
and to solicit subscriptions. In a short time afterwards the paper 
was in full blast, but it manifested so rancorous and malignant a 
character as to disgust the respectable and sincere friends of 
Jackson. It appeared to be the object of its conductors, not to 
create and sustain a party favorable to Jackson, but to vilify and 
blackwash every distinguished man of the oppo-ing party, and 
every federalist who belonged to their own. Argument gave place 
to " blackguardism." 

There wan a time, when by conciliatory and gentlemanly con- 
duct on the part of the Boston Statesman, Massachusetts might 
have been gained for Jackson. But its conductors !iad no such 
intentions. Dreading all respectable competitors in the expected 
distribution of offices, they sought recruits only in the kennels 
and gutters. Proclaiming Jackson an Irishman, they planted 
their flag in the menage of Broad-street; and holding him up as 
the champion of the poor against the rich, they received, with 
"hugs fraternal,'' the tenants of poor-house> and penitentiaries. 

The Crawford party having generally declared for Jackson and 
being composed of men acting from nobler motives than a grov- 
elling desire of plunder, could not long endure tiiis reckle.^s 
sacrifice of their ho[)es, and desecration of their principles. 
They, therefore, in 1828, established a new paper in Boston called 
the ''Jackson Republican," by which (too late.) they attempted 
to retrieve the errors into which their associates had plunged. 
At this time a separation took place in Boston between those of 
the Jackson party who contended for principles, and those who 
merely fought, like Major Dalgetty, on their own honk, — for pav 
and rations, and the plunder of the enemies' camp. 

I wrote for both papers, the Statesman and Republican, — enough 
to make a considerable v(jlume. Never was any man inflamed 
with a more intense y.eal. and, (as I then thought.) a more sincere 
patriotism. I neglecterl all other business, an<l devoted myself 
heart and hand, (o efl'ecting the great object of the party — the 
election of Jackson. I did not enlist myself in either division 



28 

of the party, — I laboured for the whole party. About this time, 
I remember, tliat some of ray jocose neighbours of the "oppo- 
sition" thought they had the laugh on me, because I happened to 
say, that if I supposed Jackson's election could only be effected 
by my being burnt at the stake, I would instantly make the 
sacrifice. Even now I think I could then have endured the or- 
deal ; but having since been restored to some degree of political 
sanity, instead of being burnt at a stake, I should, at this time, 
much prefer a steak, not burnt. 

In September 18£8, in consequence of an impertinent refer- 
ence, in the IJoston Patriot, to my "statement^' of 1824, relating 
to Mr. Adams' designs in joining the democratic party, I repub- 
lished that statement in the Jackson Republican and the States- 
man, with additional evidence of its truth. It was copied into 
nearly every Jackson newspaper in the U. States, and was intro- 
duced, by the orators of the party, into their addresses to the 
people. The Hon. Mr. Ingham employed it with singular and 
decisive eifect in Pennsylvania. There can be no doubt that this 
"statement," and the "Cunningham Correspondence," were 
among " the weights that pulled down" the minority President. 
Many distinjiuished and conscientious men have considered that 
there was something dishonourable in Mr. Cunningham's pub- 
lishing the private correspondence of his deceased father. I 
confess I never could coincide in that opinion. If any citizen 
has it in his power to unmask the real ciiaracter of a candidate 
for tlie first office in the gift of the people whom he is courting 
and deceiving by a pretended affection for their interests and 
welfare, it seems to me to be one of the highest and most sacred 
obligations to save the country from the curse of such a govern- 
ment. Mr. Cunningham is now an officer of the Customs at 
Boston, and, after an acquaintance of four jears, I believe him 
to be an intelligent, high-minded, and honorable gentleman. 

My readers must pardon me fur introducing the conclusion of 
my statement of 1828; — they will probably discern my object. 
" If it be asked why, as a federalist, 1 am opposed to Mr. Adams, 
" I answer, — because federalism, (as I ever understood it,) incul- 
" cated pure republican principles, and lionorable and consistent 
*' political conduct. Those of that party whom I have known 
♦' from my youth, were generally men of exalted integrity, ar- 



29 

" dently devoted to tlie cause of the Constitution and of rational 
'• liberty. Therefore, I consider the calumnies vented upon 
" them by Mr. Adams, at the time of his ])retended conversion, 
" to require of them as a sacred duty vvhicli they owe to thein- 
" selves, to posterity, and to their country, a firm, united, and 
" untiring opposition to all the aspirations of his ambition. Can 
" such of that party as niiw rally in his support, (and, alas ! (hey 
"are numerous,) palliate the charge, that, by so doing, they con- 
" fess the truth of l>is accusations, and seal their own infamy. 

" Again, should it be asked, (admitting Mr. Adams's political 
" desertion to be feigned, Sec.) why I come not to his aid in his 
•' design of restoring the federal party to power by treacherously 
" aftccting the ruin of tlieir former adversaries? I should think 
" it foul scorn in any one to presume to suggest so base an ac- 
" tion, — and in the language of Evan Dhu should reply, *' that 
" he who could ask such a question kens little of the heart" of a 
federalist, " or the honor of a gentleman." "* 

Tlic next day after the " Statement" was published in the 
Boston Statesman, there appeared in one of the Adams news- 
papers of that City a most outrageous attack on my private 
character. It would be hardly possible to compress, into a. para- 
graph of about ten lines, more desperate malignity and ferocity. 
It declared me a most worthless, friendless, and infamous person, 
— without business, respect, or reputation ; — insane (if mind, and 
intemperate in my habits. Now, at that very moment, I enjoyed, 
— more than is common to a young man, the confidence (»f my 
fellow-citizens; my professional business was extensive and pro- 
ductive; my personal friends were more numerous and respect- 
able than at any former period of my life; my mind was pecu- 
liarly clear and active, and perfectly sane, except, (as it has 
since proved,) in politics; and I had not tasted a single drop of 
spirits, and but one glass of wine, for nearly five years. Of 
course, the attack, was undeserved, false, and inhuman. I therefore 
caused a civil suit to be brought against the Editor of tht- paper 



• Many good WhigB may indignantly enquire, why the writer, after Mr. 
A's noble support of llieir principles in the last Conj;resg, slill condemns and 
diitrvists him ^ Let them wait five years, and their question will ba answered 
by Mr. A. himself. 



30 

in which the libel appeared, tlelenniiung.at the time, that I never 
would consent to any other compromise than a recantation by 
himself in the same paper where the injustice was committed. 
My reason for this resolve was, that whereas the same editor had 
poured out the most gross abuse of Gen. Jackson and his wife, in 
his columns, I trusted, that the recantation, to which I should 
force him in my own case, would throw a libellous character on 
his accusations against those, for whom, J then thought it my duty 
to make any sacrifice. Just before the day of trial, a large sum 
of money was offered me, (whether with my antagonist's knowl- 
edge I cannot say,) to withdraw my action; but tens of thousands 
would have presented no temptation. He then threw himself on 
my generosity ; I never could resist this appeal,— and I wrote 
the recantation which he subscribed and published thrice in his 
newspaper, in a form intended to save his feelings, while it merely 
vindicated my character from his cruel aspersions. And, after- 
wards, when he engaged in a furious controversy with another 
editor, who improperly alluded to his affair with me, I wrote to 
that editor, expressing, in strong terms, my disapprobation of any 
reference to a matter which had been fairly adjusted. Neither 
before, nor since, this attack on my private character, had I, or 
have I had, any personal acquaintance with the author. But as 
I never entertained any personal animosity against him, I can 
now say with satisfaction, as well as truth, that he is a very 
active, respectable and talented member of the community. 
What a comment on the violence of party 1 

I cannot refrain from seizing on this occasion to express my 
gratitude to the Bar of the County of Norfolk. The Court being 
in session, soon after the publication of the libel on myself, who 
was a member of the Bar, certain resolutions were introduced 
without my knowledge, and unanimously adopted, defending my 
reputation as a lawyer and a man. They were proposed by 
Joseph Harrington of Roxbury, and sustained by Horace Mann 
of Dedham. I owe a vast debt of grateful feeling to both gen- 
tlemen, who came as messengers of peace and restoration, when, 
after having surmounted many grievous trials, and attained to a 
promise of future rank and emolument, I thought myself utterly 
prostrated by the assaults of my political enemies. Mr. Harring- 
ton is the life of social enjoyment; and it is no small honor to 



31 

have been (he accnuiinlaiicc of Horace Mann, ihe founder of the 
Worcester Asvluin. Bostonians have appreciated his value as a 
public man ;— but few can know the generosity, the purity, the 
elevated principle, which distinguishes his private character. 

There are those who, 

" Ho good by stealth, and blush to find it fame." 

A few days before the Presidential election in Massachusetts^ 
1 published, in the Statesman, the "Address to the people" of 
that State. And on Mr. Adams renewing his attack on the old 
federalists, as his last movement to secure the victory, I rode to 
Boston and proposed to the Statesman leaders the printing of a 
ticket of Electors composed of '• old federalists,"— to be dispersed 
throughout the Commonwealth, and, by this means, to distract 
and divide the Adams party. Messrs. Honshaw, Simpson and 
Dunlap objected most emphatically to the projeci, as being cal- 
culated to introduce into the party distinguished men, who would 
afterwards become competitors for the public oflices. Even at 
this early period of the struggle, they seemed to think, that the 
smaller the Jackson party was in Massachusetts, the better for 
their interests. I afterwards discovered that they had conspired 
to keep the Jackson party in lliis State conveniently small, and. 
especially, to repel every respectable gentleman who oiVered to 
join it. Thev were assiduous in procuring recruits from the 
lowest and most ignorant of the populace ; but whenever a man 
of talents and information claimed their fraternity, they chanted 

the •' trio" 

" Fee, favv, fum, 

" We smell the blood of an Englishman. 

" Be he live, or be he dead, 

" Off goes Ilia head." 

It was about this time that I saw, with indignation and disgust, 
caricatures of the Hon. Francis Baylies, (the only Representa- 
tive from New-England who, in 1824, voted for Gen. Jackson,) 
inscribed on the walls. of the Statesman office! He was pictured 
with a cigar in his mouth, and on his forehead was written, " an 
old Tory!" They knew, (i. e. the Statesman party,) that Mr. B. 
was the author of the most popular public appeals which had 
appeared in the Jackson papers. But altho' he was a Jacksonian, 
when they were intriguing to be the adherents of any party which 



32 

would accept them as partisans, tliey hated him for his integrity 
and abilities; — "aside the devils turned for envy." 

Jackson was elected ! We heard the glad tidings, (as we sup- 
posed,) from tlie West, which changed our hopes to certainty. 
In a " white heat" of political enthusiasm, I rushed into Boston. 
I sought the Statesman office, and found a part of the conclave 
in session. Gentlemen, I exclaimed, I congratulate you on our 
glorious victory ! Reform is established; — tiie Constitution is 
restored to its original purity ; — the People have triumphed !" I 
noticed, as I spoke, the gradual elongation of the corners of their 
mouths, and I had no sooner ceased, but they sent forth a peal of 
laughter such as I had never heard before. Peal upon peal, rang 
through the room, for several minutes. Amazed and confounded, 
I waited impatiently for a calm, when I could demand an ex- 
planation of such conduct. ^Vhy, — I exclaimed, on the first 
cessation of the uproar, — is not this a memorable triumph of the 
people ? Here, they went at it again, roar upon roar, with occa- 
sional screams of, — " what an innocent !" — " quite unsophisti- 
cated !" &c. &.C Any one of my readers, who has ever seen a 
drop of hot tallow cooling oft', can imagine, at that moment, my 
situation and appearance! 

After this tempest of laughter was over, I was quietly informed, 
that they had won the money of the Adamsmen in bets, and 
were certain to win their offices: — and that, as I had done and 
suffered much, I should be taken care of I My readers will make 
their own comments. 

Jackson was elected ! and I had been no inconsiderable instru- 
ment in bringing about this result. If I had a window in my 
breast, mv readers would now see how my heart is wrung with 
this reflection ; — how remorse, with its thousand snakes, is sting- 
in"- it to the core. And yet I thought I was doing a good deed, 
and continued in this dream, with occasional starts of returning 
consciousness, until the appalling seizure of the public money 
eR"ectually dispersed it. Had the visible heavens, over my head, 
been suddenly " rolled together as a scroll," I should not have 
been more instantly awakened to the peril which awaited all of 
us! It is however, most fortunate for the country, that our 
Julius has preceded our Augustus Csesar ;— that the first attack 
on the Constitution, and public liberty, was so audacious, and 



33 

tmdisguised ; — that tjranny marched his legions, in open day, to 
the Rubicon, and assailed freedom with the sword, and not with 
the stiletto. Julius Caesar overturned the Rnman Republic; (in 
which, be it remembered, the last rampart of patriotism was the 
Senate ;) but it was, for a time, restored by the steel ol Brutus. 
The cautious, subtile, and intriguing Augustus finally and hope- 
lessly, riveted the chains of the people. 



CHAPTER IV. 

Vie Scramble for Office. 

" So many new-born flies, (his light gave life to,) 

" Buzz in his beams,— fleshflies and butterflies, 

" Hornets and humming scarabs,— that not one honey-bee 

" That's lo»den with true labour, and brings home 

" Increase and credit, can 'scape rifling. 



In Massachusetts, in 1828, the number of votes, for Jackson, 
was about the same as Crawford received, four years before. In 
Boston, the two divisions of the Jackson party united, for the last 
time, and mustered 800 votes for Dr. Ingalls, as Representative 
to Congress. Such a man as the Doctor is an honor to any party : 
— " Sincere, plain-hearted, hospitable, kind." He is as distin- 
guished for active benevolence as for professional skill, and is as 
successful in trepanning hearts as heads. It is wonderful, that a 
gentleman of such universal popularity could obtain only eight 
hundred votes, in a City where thousands owed him vast debts 
of gratitude; and it satisfactorily proves the determined repug- 
nance of its enlightened citizei;s to the rule of Jacksonism. The 
"good Doctor" was, however, restored to political health in 1832; 
it required only " one course" of Jackson medicine for his recov- 
ery ; — while some of us were obliged to take half a dozen. 
5 



34 

As I stated, in the former Chapter, early in '28 the Statesman 
party had driven away in disgust a large and respectable division 
of the friends of Jackson, whom they afterwards called the 
" Bulletin party." Just before the election in November, in_ 
order to keep up some show of strength they were obliged to 
solicit a reunion, which they intended should be only temporary. 
This was effected by the nomination of Dr. Ingalls. But the 
election was no sooner passed, than immediate measures were 
taken to compel another separation. As early as the 20ih Nov. 
the Statesman party proceeded to call a meeting of its adherents 
<' to reorg-flJHze the Jackson Republican party." The other di- 
vision of the friends of Jackson well knew the object of the call, 
and therefore stood aloof. At this meeting it was resolved, that, 
for the future, the party name should be ihe " Jackson Democratic 
party;" — And a County Committee and Ward Committees hav- 
in"- been chosen among themselves, they effectually excluded the 
" Jackson Republicans" from any further participation in their 
political transactions. 

Having thus shaken off" a formidable host of competitors for 
aopointments, and assumed to themselves, "par excellence," the 
exclusive mananagement of the Jackson party of the City, the 
Statesman leaders still found too many able and meritorious 
o-entlemen belongino; to their ozim faction, whose claims on gov- 
ernment patronage would come in conflict with their own long 
cherished design of engrossing the whole. It became necessary, 
therefore, to deceive these men, and the trick was adroitly man- 
aged. They had already obtained the entire control of the 
County Committee by their own votes, and those of their rela- 
tives and personal friends, of which it was composed. But this 
was not considered a sufficient security against accidents, and the 
possibility, that some might hereafter prove refractory. They 
therefore constituted themselves a grand Central, or State Com- 
jnittee, — the sun ot the system, around which all the inferior po- 
litical orbs must revolve. It was a beautiful system, for if suc- 
cessful, it grasped the power of the whole Jackson party of the 
State, as well as of the City. To make the usurpation of au- 
thority palatable to the members of the County Committee, it 
was declared, that all claims to appointments were to be settled 
by the vote of that Committee alone ; that they, (i. e. the States- 



35 

man leaders,) had no peculiar merits to oft'er on the altar of offi- 
cial homage ;— were rather indiftercnt about preferment ;— the 
reward of patriotism, the people's love, was enough for them ;— 
and, indeed, that their present occupations were much too lu- 
crative to make the toils of office desirable or even endurable. 
If however the party insisted on the sacrifice, why, there was 
none they would not make for the good of the country ; but 
should much prefer that other meritorious patriots would relieve 
them from the duty ! 

Such discourses glided like strains of soft music into delighted 
ears, and removed all feelings of remonstrance against their as- 
sumption of all the party influence. To keep up the delusion, 
meetings of the County Committee were actually held at which 
some of the members, not in the plot, and claiming to be " elder 
soldiers" tlian their managers, were nominated as Naval officers. 
Surveyors, Weighers, Guagers, &c. And they slept on these 
golden dreams, until they waked to find all these oftices in the 
possession of less confiding, and more wary politicians. Many 
poor fellows who had labored day and night for the " Hero," 
years before the Statesman leaders had concluded to embrace his 
cause, who had fi":ured as Chairmen of Committees, Moderators 
of Meetings, Secretaries of Conventions, orators, poets and news- 
paper statesmen, — who had, in anticipation of the coming official 
harvest, indulged in the most magnificent contemplations of tlie 
future, — who had said in their hearts, "I will pull down my 
barns, and build ereater'' — found themselves reduced to the ne- 
cessity of accepting soma petty appointment, mortifyitig to their 
hopes, and scarcely afi'ording them the means of subsistence! 
Some of them, however, on the explosion of the plot, indignantly 
refused the proffiiied compromise, and attempted to set up for 
themselves, and to resist the conspirators in finally clutching and 
securing their prey. In every instance such daring individuals 
were undermined, defeated, and, perhaps, ruined. No matter 
what services to the party he had rendered ; no matter what per- 
sonal friendships were broken up; no matter how much he had 
contributed to their own advancement; — the least resistance, or 
even murmuring at their authority, by any individual, was follow- 
ed by a secret but desolating vengeance. Most gentlemen in 
Boston will remember the fate of John Roberts, one of the 



36 

"original Jacksonmen," and a most devoted adherent of the 
Statesman party. There were many others who suffered like 
injustice. 

If the leaders of the Statesman party could deal thus deceit- 
fully and inhumanly with their own friends and partisans, we can 
readily iuuigine the plots, stratagems and falsehoods contrived 
against their opponents of the ' Jackson Republican, or Bulletin 
party," and against every distinguished Jacksonian in the State 
who would not succumb to their authority or whom they suspected 
of aspiring to office. As the mercenary and rapacious believe 
all men equally intent on spoil and rapine, that suspicion, of 
course, rested upon every man who possessed talents or influence, 
and who had voted for Jackson. And they had acquired the 
power of effecting incalculable mischief. For, calling themselves 
the State Jackson Democratic Committee, — with an impudence 
impervious to all sense of honor or decency, — and holding forth 
their newspaper as the sole defender of the cause, and themselves 
as the little Spartan band who wanned the Thermopylae of De- 
mocracy in Massachusetts, they did in fact persuade the great 
and leading men of the Jackson party in other States that they 
alone were deserving of honors, and that all, who were not their 
servants, were federalists and traitors. The rancour manifested 
in the Boston Statesman against the chiefs of the Bulletin party 
is inconceivable by any one who has not marked the influence of 
envy and cupidity on low minds. Every man of that party was 
denounced as a federalist; '"a Hessian.'^ " figliting for pay-'; "a 
spy in the democratic camp," — or as "soldiers enlisted after the 
victory was won." Now all this was utterly false, as they well 
knew. A great majority of the chiefs and the adherents of that 
party were " democrats of the old school," and many of them 
had been the ablest advocates of democracy in the Boston States- 
man. There were indeed some federalists among them, who 
relying on Gen. Jackson's advice to President Munroc, were con- 
fident that he would act upon sentiments so candid and mag- 
nanimous. Among these were to be found some of the most 
active and devoted of his friends. The opprobrious epithec of 
" Hessians," was wholly inapplicable to them, fur they were far 
above all mercenary considerations. The real Hessians were the 
Statesman leaders who fought for nothing but pay, who got^all the 



37 

pay, together with the plunder of their political enemies' posses- 
sions in this quarter. While many of the Bulletin party were 
amonu; the earliest to sustain the cause of Jackson, they had re- 
cruited a young and enterprising corps in the same cause. And 
acting openly, ingenuously and honestly, they neither feared spies 
or required their services. Nevertheless, the oft repeated and 
most impudent calumnies of their enemies tainted, at last, public 
opinion; — and altho' most of the injured trusted implicitly in the 
high feeling and justice of the President elect, it was but too 
evident, that he would be unable to resist the flood of prejudice 
incessantly rushing upon him. Living at a distance, I was a 
spectator, (altho' not a disinterested one,) of these ungenerous, 
fraudulent, and infamous transactions. 

Having thus separated themselves from the most respectable, 
and numerous, (and therefore, to them, the most dangerous por- 
tion,) of the Jackson party, of Boston, — having thoroughly de- 
luded and mystified their own party and usurped the control of 
all its power, — the Cabal prepared to proceed to Washington, to 
perpetrate the schemes so long in preparation. 

But some preliminary movements w^ere first necessary. They 
assiduously enlarged their correspondence with the leading Editors 
and principal men of the party in all the States, particularly with 
those known to be deuiocrats, which they were enabled to do by 
proclaiming themselves the representatives of the democracy of 
Massachusetts. Next, as it was doubted whether the President 
elect could be brought into their plans, which contemplated the 
removal from office of the public servants, not tmly in Boston, 
but throughout the State, and the United States. — whether faith- 
ful or unfaithful — with the exception only of the active partizaus 
of their factiin; it was deemed expedient to sound, before-haiul, 
the trumpet of woe and of warning;— of woe to the vanquished, 
and of warning to the President. 'The horrid peal rang from the 
brazen throats of tlie Statesman and its kindred prints. Hear, 
how it brayed from the Statesman. 

SCT^'A poor fellow, not a hundred miles off. says, certainly 
President Jackson is too gool a man to take my office from me; 
I have a family entirely dependent upon the income thereof for 
their support, and the brave Hero of New-Orleans is too gen-' 
erous, too magnanimous, aud too noble minded to deprive my 



38 

wife and little children of their bread. But hark ye, Sir; have 
you not neglected the duties of your ofBce to abuse the generous 
Jackson ; have you not laboured night and day in endeavoring to 
deceive your fellow-citizens into the belief that the now humane, 
generous, noble Andrew Jackson was an inhuman monster; a 
blood thirsty tyrant; a wilful murderer; a libertine of the black- 
est cast, ike. &LC." " Do such men deserve public confidence ? 
Is the people's money safe under the control of such men ? Cer- 
tainly not. Tlien the public good requires that they should be 
displaced." 

This Article, from the Statesman of Nov. 18th, 1828, is headed 
"The day of Reckoning." 

Similar sentiments were avoweJ. in the Albany Argus, the 
Portland Argus and indeed in a large number of the Democratic 
Jacksonian presses of the United States. And in some of them, 
it was afterwards threatened, that if any prominent statesman of 
the party should oppose this plan of indiscriminate proscription, 
he should forfeit the confidence of his political supporters. 

It is not at all astonishing, that such a generous invitation to 
pillage should have been hailed with avidity by all ignorant, 
greedy, and unprincipled demagogues. Notwithstanding it is 
apparent, to every common apprehension, not distorted by politi- 
cal insanity, that such a system must inevitably, in a short time, 
overthrow our Republican institutions, by corrupting all public 
virtue, and converting every important election into a mere scram- 
ble for office, yet there have been found able and dignified states- 
men, professing extraordinary attachment to liberty and the con- 
stitution, to give it their deliberate and commending sanction. 
Beyond a doubt, it was this invitation to a grand official massacre, 

a political St. Bartholemews, — which gathered together, at 

Washington, on the ensuing 4th of March, the host of ruffians 
who invaded the President's house, destroyed its rich furniture, 
and rioted on the dainties of his table;— and, afterwards, engen- 
dered that spirit of intolerance and proscription, which all his 
generosity, justice and magnanimity struggled in vain to resist. 
He undoubtedly possessed all these virtues, and I am unwilling 
to believe that, even now, they can be entirely cankered by the 
corrupting influence of authority. He has, let us hope, been 
*' more sinned against than sinning." 



39 

To return to tlie operations ot" tlie Boston Cabal. It is but fair 
that I bhould ''give tlie ilevil his due," and, therefore, I must 
confess, that no body of men, or conspirators, ever displayed 
more unceasing activity, industry, secrecy, and cunning, in con- 
ducting political machinations. They had prepared the way for 
their advancement with infinite diligence and ailroitness, and 
they now prepared to visit the field where the fruits of their la- 
bours were to be gatiiereil, leaving their infatuated followers at 
home meditating on vain hopes, — like parched travellers in a 
desert, on discovering the approach of a welcotne cloud, distend- 
ing tiieir grateful mouths to catch the exhilarating drops. 

Affidavits had been carefully collected touching the political 
character and deeds of all the public officers in Boston singled 
out for destruction. If any one of them had merely voted against 
the new powers, that was industriously marked, in solemn black, 
against him ; — or if he had signed any political paper favourable 
to the past Admini>trati()n, his signature was eagerly sought for; 
or the testimony of some person who had seen it, secretly pro- 
cured ; — or if he had expressed, in familiar conversation, his 
content with the masters he served, or his belief that a change 
would be injurious to the country, he was '•' written down" in 
numerous depositions, "a knave' — deserving of official death. 
Nor was any mercy designed to be shown to the public officers 
(who filled lucrative stations) of their own party. Against them 
the crime of age was alleged, — the long period they had held 
their offices — the importance of " rotation in office." Past faith- 
ful services were nothing; — poverty and misery to the hoarv head 
were nothing, even if it had been bleached in establishing, amidst 
the storms of the revolution, the very Government, which was thus 
called upon to decapitate it. Nor was even this all. Lest any 
of the Boston Bulletin party, or any distinguished man in the 
State, friendly to Jackson, should '• come between the wind and 
their nobility" and bar them from their object, every little and 
contemptible slander on the characters of such suspected persons 
was hunted up, and prepared, in rec|uisition against them. Thus 
armed and equipped, the Cabal proceeded to Washington, their 
motto being — perish all — hut ue iviii. 

I have, subsequently, been shown some of the affidavits before 
mentioned. One of them was levelled against a gallant Colonel 



40 

of the last war, who held an important office. The material fact 
was, his signature^ to a call for an Adams meeting in Boston. 
Mr. Simpson kindly favoured me with a partial view of this 
precious document, — but. at a distance of ten feet, with part of 
the name covered with his finger. He said, however, that the 
damning blot was there. Another, was a long string of certifi- 
cates intended to prostrate a Major of the late war, who had 
been maimed, for life, in the public service. Here is, substan- 
tially, a sample of the certificates. "I certify, that on &c. in 
a conversation with Major , he said, he thought Jackson un- 
fit to be President." Signed . "I certify, that I heard 

Major say that he believed Jackson to be a damned rascal" 

Signed . " I certify that many times, in conversation, Major 

said, that he was a public officer under Adams, and thought 

it his duty to stick by his superior officer, and believed he had 
more knowledge in his little finger, than old Jackson had in his 
whole body. Signed ." 

I think there were about a dozen of such frivolous charges 
ao-ainst this officer, who was acknowledged to be faithful in his 
duties, and who had received assurances that he should not be 
molested. But they " did his business.^' Mr. Nathaniel Greene 
confided this important paper to me, for the purpose of prevent- 
ing the unfortunate Major from receiving, after some years of 
distress, a neiv, but trivial appointment. I used it for a very dif- 
ferent purpose. And all such accusations, were gotten up se- 
cretly, without any knowledge thereof on the part of the destined 
victim. He was condemned, without being heard in his defence, 
or knowing his accusers. 

Tt was the " Lion's mouth" of Venice ! But more of this 
hereafter. 

It is probable, that nearly every zealous Jacksonman in New- 
Em^land who expected an office, (and most thought their chances 
fair,) and who had money enough to get there, was in Washing- 
ton on the 4th of March, 1829. The rush, the eager importunity, 
the furious competition for appointments, was a most mortifying 
and disgraceful trait in the National character. As the scene 

was described to me, I could think of nothing but Mr. of 

Roxbury, in his duck yard surrounded by its thousand quacking 
tenants, as T figured to mvself the President of the U. States, 



41 

beset by a throng of greedy, stirved, and clamorous partisans. 
This was the first evidence of the decline of our national spirit, 
dignity and independence. Itwas"</ic beginning of the end." 
If, on that day, the spirits of those proud, stern, and self-denying 
Now-Kngland patriots, who were the founders of public liberty, 
were permitted to look down on a spot hallowed by so many 
glorious associations, how they must have mourned the degeneracy 
of their children !* 

The Jackson newspapers were the immediate cause of this 
melancholy and humiliating spectacle; but many of the Editors 
of the opposing party have reason to reproach themselves with 
having prepared the way for its exhibition. They had assured 
tiie people that General Jackson could neither spell correctly, nor 
7f'rj7'' grammatically ; and, of course, the ignorant and illiterate 
thought themselves equally worthy of preferment. They had 
charged him with licentious habits, and, consequently, the dissi- 
pated and depraved looked to him as their patron. They had 
proclaimed him void of all moral principle ; — vice heard the wel- 
come intelligence in its lurking places, and stalked forth into 
open day. Had these Kditors not been infected with the mad- 
ness of party, they would have considered, that, in 1824, the 
people of Tennessee had given Gen. Jackson nearly a unanimous 
vote for the Presidency. It is unhappily true, that an ignorant, 
licentious and immoral demagogue may obtain a majority of suf- 
frages, at a time of violent political excitement, over a wise, 
just and virtuous statesman. But to suppose that such a man can 
possibly command the united voices of the freemen of a great 
and proud Commonwealth, among whom he has passed his days 
and to whom his character must be known, is absurd and mon- 
strous. It is to suppose, that, among 120,000 citizens, there are 
none who have any regard for wisdom and virtue,— a state of 
corruption that would call down ''fire from Heaven" The 
nearly unanimous vote of Tennessee, and I believe of several 
other States, in 1824, was conclusive, as to the qualilicalions and 
character of Gen. Jackson:— not that he was the best man for 
the office, but that the statements of his political opponents were 



' To the honor of the South, few of that higli-minded people were to be 
found in the crowd of beggars. 



42 

false and calumnious. He owed the immense majority he receiv- 
ed in 1828, to this mistaken policy of his political opponents. 
The Whigs of this day will profit by the lesson ; — they will not 
assail the private character of the Tory candidate. With the 
present intelligence and virtue of the people, no man, whose 
moral principles are greatly depraved, can command sufficient 
influence to procure even a nomination, (by any party numerous 
enough to give any hope of success,) for the elevated station of 
President of the U. States. The very fact of his nomination by 
one of the great parties of the country, will convince all who 
have no personal acquaintance with the candidate, that such as- 
saults are but the malignant slanders of bitter political warfare; 
— and as all generous bosoms are irresistibly inclined to succour 
the oppressed, he will gain thousands of voters, whose indigna- 
tion at injustice outweighs their abhorrence of his political prin- 
ciples. 

What are our aspiring friends, the " Statesman leaders," doing, 
all this while, at Washington ^ Having obtained the valuable as- 
sistance of Gen. Duft" Green, they had ready access to the Presi- 
dent ; — and acting on the rule of " united we stand," they prose- 
cuted their objects with a zeal and dexterity worthy of all praise. 
As usual, they had " a nice little plan of operations " probably 
suggested and arranged by the sagacious Simpson. As I have 
been informed, the offices to be secured were as follows, viz: — 
Henshaw, — as having the most money, the soundest judgment, 
and the most commanding personal appearance, was to be Secre- 
tary of the JWtnj ! Simpson, sharp at calculation, and with a 
little experience in the law, — (vide I2th vol. Mass. Reports,) — was 
to be Collector of the Port of Boston J Dunlap, Attorney of that 
District. — Brodhead, having learned the trade under Amos Binney, 
— JVavy Jlgent.' — a brother-in-law of Henshaw, lATstrai Officer; a 
Cambridge poetical and political adherent. Surveyor; and last, 
but not least, Nathaniel Greene, Postmaster of Boston.' .' " This 
was the noblest Roman of them all," it seems ; for the Boston 
Post office, with the regular salary of $2000 per annum, and the 
perquisites, and the " boxes," is worth six or seven thousand dol- 
lars a year ; — and yet Mr. Greene, in the public estimation at Bos- 
ton, was the least distinguished for talents, and political efficiency, of 
all the associates. But the " nice little plan " discloses the motive 



43 

for assigning to this gentleman so prolific an appointment. — Mr. 
Greene, as nominal proprietor and eilitorofthe Boston Statesman, 
was to present before tlie Throne, — "how he had, with nupural- 
" leled fortitude, inishakcnfidelit]!, desperate dariii;::, and at an im- 
"mensf. expense, defended tlie Democratic Thermopvlfe in 
" Massachusetts, — assailed by an inveterate host of aristocratic 
"Persians; — how he was utterly annihilated, by the same san- 
" guinary host, without his being able to report one of the slain ; 
"was alive himself, to tell his story, with alliiis companions in 
" that awful struggle ;— and that the enemy never seemed to per- 
" ceive that any foe, deserving of notice, defended the " pass," — 
"but leisurely marched through it, and carried the Republic, with- 
" out the loss of a man. Nevertheless, as the preparation for 
" the conflict, and the conflict itself, had cost him a great sum, he 
"humbly trusted that the generous country he had saved, and its 
"magnanimous master, would '^ patj fiim for heating the poker^' 
" viz : — cash, per account, cxpendcil, ^15,000."* 

The "Cabal," having discovered the liberal and unsuspicious 
character of the Chief Magistrate, who, altho' rash, precipitate 
and headstrong, is honest, sincere, and free hearted, knew that 
so solemn and affecting an appeal would work upon his generous 
nature. They knew he was the last man to desert his friends, or 
to yield to his enemies. But they prepared for a question, which 
they anticipated his sagacity would propose, vi2 : — " how could 
you carry on a newspaper, at such an c\])en?,e, without funds, and 
in the midst of such a multitude of political opponents, who would 
be the last to aid you ? — Greene was to answer, — " Sweet Sir, the 
money was loaned to me by that prurient patriot, David Henshaw, 
here present ; and the other gentlemen office seekers at his side 
became my endorsers. All of them are involved in my distresses, 
and all are money-martyrs in your service.'' 

My readers will immediately acknowledge that the plan was ad- 
mirable, and worthy of the head by which it was contrived. It em- 
braced all the confederates, — it touched the ruling passions of the 
President, and it enabled Greene (supposing he (/trf owe them,) to 
pay off his debts. It did more. In case Greene owed them nothing, 

* This wai the sum named at Washington ; we shall see how it swelled 
afterwards. 



44 

(which I am suspicious was the fact,) the appointment to the Post 
OlBce would furnish him with abundant means; and as he ever en- 
tertained a noble disdain of money, the "Moseses," bj' whom he 
was promoted, would have an opportunity to lighten him of his 
burthen. Accordingly Greene no sooner obtained the appoint- 
ment of Postmaster of Boston, than he pucchased of Hancock 
& Co. of Boston (of which firm Mr. Simpson was a partner,) rich 
furniture, to the amount of several thousand dollars. But this is 
another digression, for which I beg pardon. 

The plan of the campaign having been concocted by General 
Simpson, and the columns stationed in the rear of the palace, in 
preparation for the attack, — the light troops, affidavits and certi- 
Jicates, being judiciously posted in covert. Col. Dunlap, without or- 
ders, carried an outwork called the " District Attorney" by esca- 
lade, and was immediately secured in his conquest. This as- 
tounding breach of discipline caused the immediate retreat of the 
confederates; and Col Dunlap, having made terms with the enemy, 
returned to Boston, and thenceforth became a non-combatant in 
that campaign. In other words, while these shrewd " Statesman 
leaders'' were digesting and arranging their plans to engross all 
the important public offices in Massachusetts, Mr. Dunlap, the 
only man of real talent among them, (and I will admit that he 
has as fertile an imagination as I ever knew,) was appointed Dis- 
trict Attorney of Boston, and the Senate being in session, the 
appointment was confirmed on the spot. The rest of the con- 
federates retired, for a time, to endure the pangs of " hope de- 
ferred." 

They, however, soon rallied for a new attack, and approached 
the President, in the impressive and mournful order, that Menenius 
and his associates came before Coriolanus. Greene led the 
weeping band before him ; — he told the " story of his woes,'' — in 
a voice choked with tears ;* — his vast expenditures, his lowly de- 
votedness, — his approaching ruin. At every pause, " his backers," 
— like the spirits in Der Freyschutz, — at the casting of the 
charmed bullets, — gave a deep and thrilling groan. The Presi- 
dent was touched; he pitied the men, although he scorned the 
abjectness of the suppliants, and he promised that Greene should 

* 1 have it from good authority that Greene wept dreadfully. 



45 

be Postmaster of Boston ; — that Hensliaw might, if he pleased, 
be Collector, but not Secretary of the Navy ; and that Broilhead 
should be Navy Ayrent. As to the other otlices at Boston, he 
sljould reserve the disposition of them for tlic present, — but the 
Statesman party must be satisfied with vvluit tiiey had obtained. 
Mr. Herishaw replied, that he could by no means condescend to 
be Collector of Boston ; the salary, to be sure, was liberal, but 
money was not his object, he had a little himself, — his hobby was, 
to serve his country. The President was quite indifferent 
whether he accepted the appointment or not, and could not be 
moved from his decision by further importunity. Greene and 
Brodhead were in an ecstasy of gratitude. It would have been 
worth something handsome, to have seen the countenance of 
Simpson at this moment, when thus cut off from all h(»pe of advance- 
ment. It must have been a study for the painter. He probably 
looked, as we may suppose an engineer would look, on finding 
liiiiiself ''hoisted by his own petard." 

Let us return to Boston, — " lafuv e/j A6r,ycci." 

While the confederates were mancruvring at Washington, a 
terrible war was raging between the two Jackson newspapers, and 
the two factions at Boston. Col. Orne, of the Bulletin party, 
having taken on himself the leading of its host, and thus un- 
ceremonious! v oustinK from the command more discreet and tern- 
perate politicians than himself, vented his wrath against the 
Statesman enemy in unmeasurable terms; to which the enemy 
replied, with a fire of slang-artillery that scattered the mud in 
front of the Colonel's position in all directions. The Colonel 
had an eye on the Post ofllce. Relying on his valuable services 
as a writer, (and he wrote well,) (m his original Jacksonism, ai\d 
on the consciousness that he was the ablest, (he certainly was.) 
of the gladiators who were contending for olfice, he remained at 
home, confiding in the beneficence and prescience of the I'resi- 
(lent, while his rivals were tripping up his heels at Washington. 
Had he known the men with whom he had to deal, he would have 
ruslied, on a rail-road of indignation, to the spot where the bat- 
tle was to be won.' But he "slept, while beadles thundered at 
his door." He was not to blame for this supineness and security ; 
for until the deed was done, no man had a suspicion of the 
enormous treachery of which the Statesman leaders were capable. 



46 

On the 4th March '29, the two factions held separate celebra- 
tions of the triumph of the party ; the BulletiH party at Faneuil 
Hall, and the Statesman party at the Washington Garden. Ex- 
traordinary exertions were made by the last to assemble an im- 
posing multitude in their ranks. A Democratic Convention of 
all the friends of Jackson, in the State, was called, to meet in 
the morning, at the State House, for the pretended purpose of 
nominating a Democratic candidate for Governor. Hundreds of 
tickets were given away to persons who loved a good dinner 
better than the principles of the party. All Broad-street was 
invited, as the peculiar favorites of the Irish President. The 
procession moved from the State House, preceded by music and 
the military. " I saw them on their winding way," — and had I 
been at Toulon, in France, I should have had no doubt, that the 
head of the procession was composed of the officers of justice, 
and the centre, and rear, of convicts condemned to the gallies. 
Nothing was wanting but the hand-cuffs. 

Having received an invitation from the Bulletin party to act as 
one of the Vice-Presidents of the day at Faneuil Hall, I went 
there, and found at> assembly of about 500 gentlemen ; the most 
respectable company of young men I ever met; — enthusiastic in 
their rejoicings, and ardent in their hopes of the benign influence 
of the new President's Administration. As my eye glanced over 
the well filled tables, and among the numerous heads could detect 
only some half dozen touched with the frost of time, I felt proud 
that I was a Jacksonman. These were the men who confidently 
expected, that the country was to be blessed with an administra- 
tion, which would extinguish the smouldering ashes of party 
feuds ; — that, in the spirit of the letter to Monroe, Gen. Jackson 
was to be the President of the whole people, and not of a party. 
Not a man was there, who, had he been told, by some prophetic 
spirit, that within three years the Government would pass into the 
hands of the " scullion Cabinet," but would have chastised the 
supposed slanderer on the spot. The republican Address of Gen. 
Lyman, President of the day, and the toast of Mr. Otis, wherein 
he declared, that if the new President acted on the sentiments 
he had openly avowed, "New-England would meet him more 
than half way," were in the true spirit of the occasion. 

I carried to Boston, in ray pocket, the following Poem, which, 



47 

I wrote on a stormy day in February ; and as it may relieve my 
readers from the tedium of a dull narrative, 1 here insert it. It 
is better as a poem than a prophesy. 



ODE TO AN EX-PRESIDKNT. 

For the Uh March, 1829. 



" Sweet are the uses of adversity •" 

Aye, when it fastens on a noble mind, 

Itiifts to Heaven: — chilling penury, 

And the world's scorn, and hate, and malice blind. 

Arc as the idle wailing of the wind. 

To him who stands erect, in virtue bold: 

The living waters of the heart, confined 

By selfish cares, misfortune doth unfold; 

As by the prophet's wand the gushing rock of old. 

Not such thy fate ! thine eyes shall ne'er discern, 
Above the gath'ring night, one cheering star 

Beam on thy hopes: and vainly shalt thou turn, | 

To catch one sound of sympathy from far. 

Thou art alone! around thee is the jar "j 

Of baseless grandeur, into ruin cast, ' 

And crushed beneath thy conquering rival's car: I 

While all the thousand voices of the past, i 

lujplore of future time, that thy dishonor last. i 

i 
And it shall last! 'till Time's remorseless wave, ] 

Whelms in its surge all mem'ry of our clime; { 

Til! the accusing dead shall burst the grave; 
And slandered virtue wears in heaven subbme, 

A robe unspotted with thy pois'nous slime; j 

Till Hamilton shall raise thy suppliant knee; < 

And Ames's eloquence shall plead thy crime, ] 

When known, — forgiven : — trembling thou shalt see, ^ 

His madness,* but a brighter spark of Deity ! 

What dost thou there? — still ling'ring round the spot,t 

Where lie the broken relics of thy power? i 

Are not the sweets of empi^e yet forgot? 

Or wilt thou meanly near thy rival cower. 

Waiting the dawn of some propitious hour. 

To plead thy venal service to his fame, j 

When Senates, o'er him, saw pale envy lower ?+ I 

Died with thy ibrtnnes all of gen'rous shame? I 

Where is thy Sire's proud heart, — the spirit of thy nam«f 

^ I 

• Mr. Adamn mistook Mr. Ami •«'« geniuH for iiiHaiiity. Vide jiin Review of Mr. Ame»'s Book. | 

tThe Ex-Prealdent remained at WaBhingtoii to witness the inauguration ef the illus- ; 

trious JarkRon. J 

{ Mr. A. defended Gen. Jackson ogRinit the attempt of certain Senator* to impeach him j 

for violating the SpanUh territory. J 



48 

Go! — if thy craven mind hath lost, indeed, 

Of worth, the conscious glow! — and lowly hear. 

Justice, as Marshall, give bright honors meed, 

A nation's ofPring, to a Patriot dear; — 

Go! — and with servile bend, thy Chief revere; 

Let cringing subtlety do all it can; — 

But may such scornful greeting blast thine ear. 

As once pronounced presumptuous folly's ban, — 

" My Lord Chief Justice, speak to that vain man!" 

Return, — and fly the scoffing of thy foes; 
Come to the thickest shades of father-land! 
The pyre of libelled character yet glows, 
Still, round its embers yells thy ghastly band. 
Come,— lead their revels with paternal hand; 
(For such the offspring of thy ranc'rous heart,) 
Lo ! Slander hails thee from thy native strand ' 
Honor, and worth, from thy contagion start. 
And Glory, in thy halls, exclaims, "let us depart!" 

Enter, — and weep the downfall of thy line! 

Thy once thronged courts, — how desolate and lone; 

No living sages round thy hearth recline. 

But from thy walls, thine ancestry doth moan, — 

And Roman virtue frowns in sculptured stone: 

And all thy early friends, who made thee great, 

Stand afar off; — and list thy frequent groan. 

As conscience, the avenger of their hate. 

Preys on thy stubborn soul, still struggling with its fate. 

At the Washington Garden, the Statesman party mustered 
about 800 persons; of whom, at least 300 were Irishmen. At 
this dinner, as at all others since that day, the zealous but ig- 
norant members of the party were furnished with toasts by the 
leading members, which, when published, presented a very for- 
midable array of " public sentiment." A most ludicrous scheme ! 
since most of those, by whom such sentiments were uttered, 
never hail a sentiment in their lives. They were honest men, 
who meant well, but were wholly incapable of discharging their 
political inclinations in polished or even grammatical language. 
These toasts were always highly complimentary to the leading 
men of the Statesman faction, and, frequently, were designed to 
point out to the President and his Counsellors, what was expected 
by the Ajaxes of his party in Massachusetts. In another chapter 
I will present my readers with some amusing specimens. 

We left our friends at Washington : — Greene and Brodhead 
chuckling at their good fortune — Henshaw sullenly recoiling on 
his " reserved rights," and Simpson petrified with amazement that 



49 

among all the good things he could get nothing- But " the 
course" of office-seeking, like that of "true love, — never did run 
smoothe." Greene's mirth was soon changed to wailing, by the 
refusal of the Postmaster General, the lion. John McLean, to 
remove the old Postmaster of Boston, or to be the agent of the 
general proscription which was meditated in his Department. 
This startling fact being ascertained, all the thousands of pe- 
titioners for Post Office appointments, present at AVashington, 
immediately leagued together, with the intent of relieving the 
General Post Office from the superintendence of Mr. McLean. 
Their influence and importunities were too powerful for the 
President to withstand, and Mr. McLean was made a Judge of 
the Supreme Court. Greene has been heard to say in Boston, 
that "he turned out the Postmaster General !" 

Brother Brodhead, also, was in trouble. For the peculations 
of Watkins having been discovered, it became necessary that 
Mr. Harris, the Navy Agent at Boston, should appear at the ex- 
pected trial of the offender, as a witness for the Government. 
It was therefore considered by Mr. Kendall very bad policy to 
remove Mr. Harris until after the condemnation of the accused. 
Mr. Brodhead then had to endure the torment of beholding, for 
more than a year, tiie golden-pippin t)f office suspended before 
his " mind's eye," and bobbing against his nose, without the lib- 
erty of touching it. He retired, ''a melancholy man, sore strick- 
en," to Boston, and resumed his tailoring. 

"Misfortunes never come singly," it is said; and it was about 
this time the inquisitive Simpson discovered, that his dignified 
friend, Henshaw, in leaning too hard upon the staff of his " re- 
served riglits," was in imminent danger of pitching over back- 
wards, and losing both his staff and office. In other *Vords, he 
discovered that the President had concluded, (as Henshaw de- 
clined the appointment,) to make the Hon. Francis Baylies 
Collector of Boston, and that his nomination would be sent to 
the Senate the next morning! 

" All I llien and tliere was hurryinp; to and fro, 
And rnountinrj in hot liaste ;" 

The confederates immediately assembled in consternation and 
dismay, and prepared for an instant interview with the President. 
As they rushed up Pennsylvania Avenue, the devil, out of sheer 



50 

malice, launched an arrow at their rear which wonderfully quick- 
ened their movements, viz : — they were informed that General 
Boyd, a member of the Bulletin party, had been appointed Naval 
officer of Boston. Now this was a snug berth, which, for the 
want of a better, our sagacious friend Simpson was beginning to 
entertain the notion of occupying himself Breathless with haste 
and anxiety, they came before the President, and in panting ac- 
cents informed him, that Mr. Henshaw had relented, and would, 
for the good of the party, condescend to accept the Collectorship 
of Boston. Well, — replied the President, — I have offered it to 
him, I never change my intentions — he shall have it. And so 
Henshaw's nomination was sent to the Senate in the morning in- 
stead of Mr. Baylies's. It remained there, nearly a year, before 
it was confirmed. 

My readers will permit me to remark, that the division which 
existed in the Jackson party at Boston, extended throughout the 
whole Jackson party, in every section of the Union. The friends 
of the President in the U. States were separated into two distinct 
parties. One of them, (perhaps the least numerous, but most 
respectable,) being composed of moderate men, republicans in 
principle, — firmly attached to the Constitution, and devoted lov- 
ers of liberty based upon order and law, looked to the Adminis- 
tration of Jackson as destined to harmonize the various contend- 
ing interests of the country; to carry on, steadily but cautiously, 
the work of reforming the abuses which have crept into our sys- 
tem of government, and having for its chief a gallant soldier, of 
a generous and elevated character, it was confidently trusted that 
the low, and time-serving, and mercenary spirit which had been 
gradually corrupting the national character, would be supplanted 
by the more liberal, lofty, and independent spirit which distin- 
guished the first years of the Confederacy. The other faction, 
being composed of radicals and office-seekers, hoped for no such 
blessings. They cared nothing for the Constitution, or the pres- 
ervation of our ancient institutions ; — law and order were their 
abhorrence, and public harmony was the most unhealthy atmos- 
phere in which they could e.'cist; — reform, unless it meant proscrip- 
tion, was of no consequence ; and a spirit of united forbearance, 
magnanimity and devotedness to the general welfare, was certain to 
be fata! to their influence in the nation. Their design was, to use 



51 

Jackson as the dispenser o( the ' loaves and fishes" of office mere- 
ly ; and make him tl\eir tool, for elevating to distinction, low and 
base, but <;rcodv partisans, who were conscious that they |)ossess- 
ed neither talent or tiesert to acquire distinction in any other 
way. Most unhappily, the President, in the very first days of his 
official career, fell into the hands of this latter party, the leadir of 
which was Van Buren, and its lieutenant Amos Kendall. And 
notwithstanding his messages have breathed the genuine sentiments 
common to his character, these malign advisers have never suft'ered 
him to carry one of them into effect ; but on the contrary, he has 
been so counselled, that the Constitution has been violated, law 
and order contemned, public liberty put at hazard, — the country 
driven to the highest pitch of excitement, reform made a curse, 
and a spirit of rancorous hate, and grovelling Cupidity, created 
anj dispersed into erery little hamlet of our once happy and inde- 
pendent land. 

Now, if any reflecting man supposes, that these tilings can be, 
without overturning our republican institutions, or exciting a rev- 
olution to reinstate them, let him 'Hay that flattering unction to 
his soul ;" — he will be roused in time! Mark what the Rev. Rob- 
ert Hall, one of the wisest and worthiest writers of the present 
century, says of the French Revolution. One would imaii^ine it a 
description of the present times. 

"Among the various passions, which that Revolution h:ts so stri- 
kingly displayed, none is more conspicuous than vanity — vanity, both 
in those whose business it was to lead, and in those whose lot it was to 
follow — infusing into the former — into those entrusted with the enac- 
tion of laws — a spirit of rash innovation and daring empiricism — a 
disdain of tho established usages of mankind — a foolish desire to daz- 
zle the world with new and untried systems of policy, in which the 
precedents of antiquity and the experience of ages were only consulted 
to be trodden under foot: vanity, predominating among tho latter, the 
million, by reason of — political power, tho most seducing o!)ject of 
ambition, never before circulating through so many hands; the pros- 
pect of possessing it never before presented to so many minds — mul- 
titudes who, by their birth and education, and not unfrcquentiy by 
their talents, seemed destined to perpetual obscurity, being, l»y the al- 
ternate rise and fall of parties, elevated into distinction, and sharing in 
the functions of government; the short-lived forms of power and otlice 
gliding with such rapidity through successive ranks of degradation, 
from the court to the very dregs of the people, that they seemed rath- 
er to solicit acceptance than to be a prize contending for. Vet, as it 
was still impossible for nil to possess authority, thougii none were wil- 
ling to obey, a general impalienco to break tho ranks, and rush into 
the foremost ground, madden-'d and infuriated the nation, and over- 
whelmed law, order, and civilization with the violence of a torrent." 



CHAPTER V. 



w3 Visit to Washington. 



" Oh ! how wretched 
la that poor man, that hangs on princes' favours! 
There is, betwixt that smile we would aspire to, 
That sweet aspect of princes, and our ruin. 
More pangs and fears than wars or women have." 



By the advice of numerous friends, I prepared, on the last of 
June, '29, to visit Washington ; having some commissions to exe- 
cute for the people of several towns in my county. And here, 
like an honest man, I will confess, my political delusion was so 
complete, that I favoured the work of proscription, and carried 
with me, to Washington, petitions for the removal of Jive ob- 
noxious Postmasters, in Norfolk County; — all of whom were 
removed. 

I went first to Boston, for the purpose of obtaining letters of 
introduction to the leading men at Washington, from the chiefs 
of the two factions of tlie Jackson party in Boston. Never hav- 
ing taken an active part as a partisan of either faction, I appre- 
hended no difficulty in readily securing the recommendations of 
both. The leading men of the Bulletin party gave them, at once, 
in the most generous and gentlemanly manner. I then went to 
the Statesman office, and finding Dunlap and N. Greene pres- 
ent, announced my intention. Dunlap. You had better not go; 
— it will cost you a great sum. Ans. True, — but I am paid for 
going. D. Why not do the business by letter; — it can be done 
just as well. Ans. I wish to see the President and the business 
can best be performed on the spot. I shall go at all events. D. 
Greene, give him a letter to Duff" Green ; but it is d — d nonsense 
to be going to Washington at this time. Greene busied himself 
in inditing a letter to General Duff'. •' How long are you to 
remain in town, and when do you start on your journey," he 
enquired. Ans. I remain to-night, and start in the morning's 



53 

stage. Greene. Will you remain /jere, twenty minutes.^ Ans. 
Certainly. U. Well, I will see Henshaw withiif that time, and 
you shall have a decisive answer. He rushed IVoin the office for 
this purpose. 

After Mr. Hensliaw had obtained, from the President, the ap- 
pointment of Collector of Boston, I wrote to hiiu soliciting a 
station in his Department. His answers announced the annoy- 
ance of numerous applications, and his disposition to do me the 
justice which he confessed I deserved ; — but there was nothin" 
detinite to be gathered from his declarations. 

In less than 20 minutes Greene returned, and informed me 
that he had had an interview with Mr. Henshaw, who had solemnly 
promised to appoint mo an Inspector of the Customs, within a 
week. •• It is very well," I replied, '-but I shal^ go, notwith- 
standing:." 

Mr. H. was as good as his word, for my appointment, as an 
Inspector, was anuuunced in the *' official" paper, the Statesman, 
while I was at Washington. The object of this movement is too 
manifest to require any comment. I declined the appointment 
on my return. 

Early in the morning of a tempestuous day in June, '29 — I 
took stage for Providence, well furnished v^ith documents, letters, 
certificates and other political credentials; and commenced the 
business of an office-seeker. It is in vain to deny that I felt 
ashamed of it, but I had involved myself hi necessity by my 
reckless labours in the recent contest. And, what is more worthy 
of reflection, I had lost, in a great degree, the inclination and 
taste for regular occupation, and, when contemplating an easy 
station under government, considered my profession '"■ quite a 
bore." I have since remarked the same melancholy efVocts in a 
great many young men who had been dabbling in politics; — and 
have had the grief to witness every one of them writhing uniler 
a sense of the degradation to which they had been reduced. 

In the stage, we had a gentleman and lady, beioni:;in;; to New- 
York, who were of the Fanny Wright School, and who scolVed 
at the Deity and religion in language absolutely shocking to my 
ears, which were not peculiarly setisitiveon such subjects. I saw 
them the same night, on the deck of the Steamer Benj. Franklin, 
as she struggled through a tremendous tempest of wind, rain and 



54 

lightning, pale with dread and trembling with emotion, and 
thousht I never beheld two more desolate and hopeless beings. I 
never expected to see the light of another day ; but seating my- 
self amidst some bales of cotton on the middle deck, I waited 
the result with tolerable composure, resolving, that when the boat 
foundered, (which was not thought improbable) my last cry should 
be " huzza for Jackson." For, at this time, my political enthusiasm 
was at its height;— and as I was now approaching the sun of my 
system, and being nearly at my perihelium, my loyalty burned 
with astonishing fervour. 

We had a horse-jockey, from the country, on board, who had 
never before seen a steam-boat, or encountered the perils of the 
sea. He was driven from his berth below at midnight, when the 
storm was at the worst. He stood near me, horror-struck, as the 
foaming surges came rushing upon us, and, observing the convul- 
sive pitching of the boat as she rose upon the opposing wave and 
then descended into the abyss, he exclaimed, "my gorry ! how 
.she rares !" (rears.) 

Morning dawned only to give us a taste of another danger. 
The Captain of the Franklin attempted to rush up the torrent at 
Hurl-gate, with a furious wind driving down stream, and the tide 
in the worst possible state for his purpose. The Steamer moved 
•slowly among tlie rocks and foaming waters, until she came nearly 
opposite the point, on the left hand, when she stopped, struggled 
for a moment, and was then borne down by the current. By the 
•skill of the helms-man. she was backed into smooth water, pro- 
tected by the point of land before mentioned. The steam was 
raised higher, and another attempt made, with the same result. 
As the preparations were making for a third trial, and the volumes 
of dense black smoke rolled over our heads, I remarked, that the 
passengers who had wives on board grasped them more closely 
by the arm, — or took their children into a warmer embrace. But 
there was no explosion;— -the boat, being strained to her utmost 
tension, darted up the stream, like a pickerel whose tail had been 
rudely plucked, and we were in New-York. 

I saw this great City for the first time. The first view was not 
impressive, — by no means so much so as Boston from the Roxbury 
or Charlestown avenues. The surface, on which it is built, is too 
low and level. It was Sunday, and I noticed, instantly, a diiFer- 



55 

ence in the population of the two cities. The majority of the 
people in the streets of New-York seemed to me to be Irishmen 
and Negroes. I sat in a window opposite a magnificent Churcli, 
and counted the passengers on the side-walk. The proportion 
was, one black to three white men. This may have been acci- 
dental, but it struck me, at oiice, as a peculiarity. But little 
time was allowed for observation, — the boat was waiting and we 
were hurried on through New-Jersey. We have no population in 
New. England at all like that of New-Jersey; — nor have we any 
forests through which a man might ride on horse-back without en- 
dangering his head. The "Jerseys" beat us in woods and pas- 
turage, but cannot hold a candle to us in the industry, neatness, 
and intelligence of the people. The Delaware is a beautiful 
river; — with delicious rural retreats on its banks, — where one 
would desire to live and die. which last, he probably would soon 
do, of the fever and ague. There was a French traveller in the 
boat, who after dinner sat at table gazing through the open port- 
holes at the moving prospect on shore, — tapping the point of his 
knife on a plate, and smiling to himself in delighted complacency. 
Monsieur, asked a passenger, what amuses you so much.' Ah! 
Mons. replied, — dis isii von vonderful contrie — tis all de same, — 
de same riviere, de same pretty place — me see all dat this morn- 
ing; — vonderful! — vonilerful ! He had gone from Philadelphia 
to Trenton in the Steamer in the morning, and, by mistake, wa& 
now going back again, while supposing himself on the way to 
New-York ! 

Philadelphia — the Genoa of the U. States, — a city of palaces. 
\Ve stayed but a moment, and I had merely time to notice a pe- 
culiar silence and order that seemed to reign throughout its clean 
and spacious streets. Baltimore, — the metropolis of fun and 
jollity, — where I saw, in one hour, more lovely women walking 
the fashionable promenade, than I ever saw before in my life. 
Pale, but of destructive grace and fascination ; — I did not sleep 
for twenty-four hours afterwards. Washington, — an apology for 
a City; — Gadsby's — we are arrived. 

In passing through Bladensburgh, famous as the scene of the 
*• Bladensburgh races," I could not avoid reflecting, "what great 
events from little causes spring;'' — and I have ever since held 
military science in great contempt. Here is a paltry stream 



56 

spanned by a long and narrow wooden bridge. In the spring of 
the year, no doubt, it is at times a torrent; but in June, when I 
crossed it, (and certainly in August,) it could not have been knee 
deep. The British columns marched towards this bridge in their 
advance on Washington. On the opposite side, the American 
army was posted, "in position, " as it is called, which was no 
position at all, — no heights, no forests, no impassable low lands in 
front, — but just as if it had been [)osted on Boston Common; — 
and the frog-pond there is a much more formidable obstacle to 
an advancing enemy, than the brook at Bladonsburgh. Four miles 
in the rear of the American position, was a range of heights, 
rising abruptly from the road, with marshy and forest land in 
front, where, had our army been stationed, and showed only a 
determination of contesting the pass, the British must have come 
to a stand, and a retreat would have been tatal. If there was a 
want of judgmtnt in selecting the position of the Americans, the 
stupidity of the British General was not less wonderful. He 
marched his columns to the bridge, and instead of directing them 
to deploy, and cross the stream in line, which could have been 
done for miles above and below the American army, he ordered 
the leading column to advance over the bridge, in close order, 
under a murderous fire from Com. Barney's artillery. He seem- 
ed to think, that because he had a rivulet in his front, it was as 
impassable as the ocean. All the loss the British army suffered, 
except from the intense heat of the day, was in passing the bridge. 
Once across, and their enemies " fled from them like quicksilver." 
And yet this British commander was General Ross, so distin- 
guished in the war of the Peninsula. The secret for gaining a 
great military reputation, I believe to consist, in the General's 
inspiring his troops with the conviction, that he is invincible, and 
an " exceeding shrewd fellow." This effected, they are inacces- 
sible to a panic, and unmoved by the most palpable blunders. 

On the morning of my arrival at Washington, I presented my 
letter of introduction to Gen. Green, the McDuft'ot the Jackson 
party. I was quite surprised to find the General so good looking 
and gentlemanly a personage. Having supposed that the exag- 
gerated statements of his political opponents could not be entirely 
false, I expected to meet a meager, and bilious political writer, 
with a tomahawk on his table, and the stuffed skin of some anni- 



57 

liilated enemy ilepentlitig from tin* ceiliiij;; — as apothecaries liang 
up alli<;ators io tlieir shops. On the contrary, I was introduced 
to a gentleman of a commanding ti^uro, a quick and penetrating 
eye, and a remarkable volubility and eloquence ot" tongue, lie 
immediately oftVred to be my usher into the presence of the Pre- 
sident, at the palace. Accordingly at about 11 o'clock, I march- 
ed thither, with some half dozen other political neophytes, under 
the escort of General Green. We were immediately admitted by 
the porter, and found ourselves before the President of the 
United States. He was a tall and emaciated gentleman, with an 
impressive countenance indicating decision and obstinacy, and his 
head was covered with an abundance of hair, as white as snow. 
He had a trick of drawing down the left corner of his mouth, 
when he formed a resolve, which was un|)leasing, and gave to his 
aspect at such moments, a peculiar " G — d damn me" expression. 
He was dressed in black throughout; even his neckerchief was 
of black silk, and he wore no shirt collar. He was smokin"- his 
short pipe when we entered, but instantly laid it down, and re- 
ceived U3 with a grace and courtesy only tt) be acquired iri the 
camp. My brethren in afHictioM, (i.e. the office-seekers,) were in- 
troduced before me, and when it came to my turn, General Green 
forgot my name, and I was compelled to introduce myself. We 
all sat down, and the President recollecting that one of our num- 
ber was presented as an Editor, of his party, from Western New 
York, turned towards him and enquired the state of Ariti-masonrv 
in that section of the country. The Editor replied that " public 
opinion, in that quarter, prevented the administration of justice 
ill their courts." The President instantly fiied. — and exclaimed 
with much excitement, " it must be false; I never will believe 
that of my fellow-citizens ; — it is impossible tliat the intelligent 
people who inhabit Western New York, can be so deplorably 
corrupt, as to set aside Law and Justice, in the vain attempt to 
vindicate a questionable opinion." 1 came witliiii half an inch of 
starting from my chair, and clasping the speaker by the hand. 
Such a noble ilisdain of any impeachment of the characttfr of his 
countrymen ; — such an implicit confidence in the purity of the 
people, touched me, as being the very sentiments which a Presi- 
dent (if the United States always ought to entertain. I left hi.'i 
8 



58 

presence with a stronger regard for the Chief Magistrate, than at 
my presentation. 

The next day, I was introduced to the Secretary of the Treasu- 
ry, Hon. S. D. Ingham, by the following note from General Green. 

Washington, 28th June, 1829. 
Dear Sir, — Permit me to introduce to you John B. Derby, Esq. 
of Dedham, Mass. To this gentleman we are indebted for the expo- 
sure of the motives which led to ihe conversion of John Quincy 
Adams. He has at all times been a firm and consistent Republican 
and brings with him the confidence of our political friends in Boston. 
Yours, sincerely, D. GREEN. 

Hon. S. D. Ingham, Secretary of Treasury. 

I was extremely pleased with the manners and conversation of 
Mr. Ingham. It was impossible to be five minutes in his com- 
pany without the conviction that he was an honest man. His re- 
markably clear and intelligent eye showed the unimpassioned and 
keen-sighted statesman. He enquired very particularly about 
the divisions among the Jackson party at Boston. Although I 
regretted that the President had been so completely deceived by 
the Statesman leaders, yet I reflected, that, the appointments 
having been made, if they should be revoked, the President would 
subject himself to the taunts of the opposition, for having decided 
in haste, or for lacking judgment in his decision. I therefore 
told Mr. Ii\gham. that the deed having been done, could not be 
recalled ;— -and that, on the whole, it might prove most advanta- 
geous for the republican party, to continue the Statesman party 
as the especial favorites of the Administration. This declaration 
went amazingly " against the grain," but I thought it my duty to 
make it. He then desired to know, if there was any probability 
that the dissensions could be healed. I replied, that I thought a 
plan could be devised, which would satisfy both parties; and that I 
would communicate it to the President's private Secretaries. At 
this moment, the door opened, and a " spirit of a different aspect'* 
entered; — "■ and where lie gazed a gloom pervaded space." It 
was an exceedingly warm day, but the intruder was buttoned up 
to the throat in a white broadcloth great-coat,— a white linen 
handkerchief was bound close about his head, and his countenance 
was pale and cadaverous. I never remember of recoiling from 
any human spectacle, with such instinctive antipathy and disgust. 



59 

Mr. Derby, said tlie Secretary of the Treasury, "allow ine to in- 
troduce you to Mr. Ainus Kendall." We clasped hands, and I 
felt a thrill of cholera stealing over my frame. " What,'' I ex- 
claimed. *• Mr. Kendall, — has the political enemy been using his 
physical power on your devoted head.'" "No." he mildly an- 
swered, " I am suffering with the sick head-ache." He whispered, 
a moment, in the ear of the Secretary, and then vanished. I 
breathed more freely after he was gone. 

The same day, I was introduced to the Secretary of State, — 
Mr. Van Buren. I found myself before a bald-headed, but whis- 
kered little gentleman, dressed in the extreme of fashion, full of 
smirks and smiles, soft as the "sweet South, breathing o'er 
violets," — but penetiating as a mercurial bath, or the poison of 
the Upas. He enquiied, particularly, about the contending fac- 
tions of the party in Boston, and I gave similar answers, as to 
the same questions by Mr. Ingham. We were interrupted by 
another office-seeker, and he bowed me out of his office, with a 
grace worthy of "Beau Nash."* 

I next called at the General Post Office, and was presented to 
the Postmaster General, Mr. Barry. A very easy and liberal- 
minded public officer, rather repulsive in his personal appearance, 
but remarkably attractive by his manners and conversation ;— the 
most eloquent man, I suspect, of any member of the Cabinet. We 
killed otC five Postmasters of Massachusetts, in five minutes, (a)! 
with a smoothne.ss and gentility which only the guillotine could 
equal. In the office of the Clerk of Appointments, I met with 
Mrs. Royall, "in a fine frenzy rolling ;"--who told a foreigner— a 
Clerk in the General Post Office.— that " she had seen bears, rac- 
koons, and alligators, — but never had the pleasure to encounter a 
monkey, before she met with him." To which he answered, "go 
away — you dam voman of de bad tongue, — you no good for not- 
ting." I had the honor to attract her fancy, and she pronounced 
me "a gentleman and a scholar," before I had spoken a single 
word, — and on the riext day called at my rooms. 

The following day I was invited to eat a family dinner with 



" In July '29, tbe "Kitchen Cabinet" was not rBlablished ; and it was 
manifest lliat Mr. Calhoun was more the favorite than Van Buren. Mr. C. 
had left Washington. I See Appendix. 



60 

tbe President. I went to the palace, and found myself the only 
invited guest. I should have <^azed on the President alone, had 
not the wife of one of his Secretaries been so transcendently 
lovely, that I could not help saying to myself "Oh, that for me, 
some" fair, '• like this, had smiled." There is, in the Southern 
ladies, a grace, softness and refinement, which completely dis- 
tances the f;icina(ions of our ruddy, vigorous, and active damsels 
of New-England. They do not make such useful wives, but they 
are the enchanting beings, from whom Byron drew his portraits of 
— Zuleika, Medora, Gulnare, and Haidee. If one was ambitious 
of public distinction and elevated station, give him a South- 
Carolina wife, and she v/ould enable him to win everything. 

The dinner was remarkably plain and republican; such a din- 
ner as A Yankee farmer would have on his table any day in June, 
viz: — a roast shoulder of lamb, green peas, and a leg of bacon. 
The President ate nothing but peas, and drank but two glasses of 
wine. Tlie only observation he made which impressed my recol- 
lection, was, " that, if a General presumed to consider the enemy, 
in his front, as contemptible, he was certain to be beaten. He 
always planned his arrangements, as if the enemy was vastly 
stronger than himself; — holding in doubt the reports of his spies 
and informers.'' 

The dinner being ended, the President calleil for his pipe, and, 
seating himself in a recess at the window, drew a chair near his 
own, and beckoned me to occupy it. The members of his family 
retired, and I was left alone with the great man. He said, "he 
had known something of me before, through the newspapers, and 
of the trials I had sustained during the late political contest." I 
told him that I had no claims on his approbation for any thing I 
had suffered ; — that I had only done my duty as a faithful citizen, 
and the consciousness of that was reward enough. That I was a 
federalist, — and all the members of the family to which I belonged, 
were federalists ; — but, as I had maintained my attachment to a 
party, for many years, against all hope of its future restoration to 
power, I had, like the other young federalists of New England, 
acquired the principle of fidelity, and proved the sincerity of my 
opinions. That a large proportion of his adherents in New- 
England, and particularly in Massachusetts, were federalists, or 
the sons of federalists, and they would be the last to desert 



61 

him, if he "ruled righteously," or to annoy liim uifh mercenary 
importunities. Jle snatched his pipe from his mouth, and said, 
with great vehemence. '• I believe it, every word of it; — I sliail 
know nothing in my Administration, of tlie ohl party ilistinctions ; 
all I require in the public servants is capacity, honesty, and fidel- 
ity to the Constitution. You have done much. — and tell me, 
what station would you desire to fdl under my government?" I 
replied, it was reported in Boston that Mr. Gerry, the Surveyor 
of the District, would be removed, and I believed that if I was 
appointed in his place, it would be in my power to render essen- 
tial services to the republican party in Massachusetts, by contri- 
butions to the party newspapers, and more especially, bv pre- 
senting in myself the evidence that the young men who had tho 
misfortune to be the descendants of old feileralists, were not pro- 
scribed by his administration. He answered. •' I have promised 
not (o remove Mr. Gerry, but [ have not promised to re-appoint 
him, anil his commission does not expire until next January. 
Perhaps you cannot wait so long.'" Oh yes, I replied, it will 
take me quite as long to bring my professional business to a close, 
and to prepare to enter on my new duties. The President re- 
flected a moment ami then said, "had you any other appointment 
in contemplation r" Yes Sir, I answered, I hail thought that if 
I failed in the more desirable object, I would propose the Consu- 
late at Naples, with ati a;;ency for the American claims on that 
Government. '• Hut there is no appropriation for such an ofTue," 
the Presiilent exclaimed, " we want young men to be educated as 
diplomatists, our country is deplorably deficient in such men, 
we have no corps of diplomatic agents, there are no schools for 
the instruction of such a corps. Thi-; project of voiii s will ndt 
answer ; there are no funds to send you fortii. I will consult 
my Secretaries, and you may, 1 think, consider the Surveyorship, 
at Boston, as your own." I clasped the hand of the Piesident, 
with affection and reverence, and retired to Gadsby's ; with(>ut feel- 
ing that my feet touched the earth, I seemed to tread on air. 

The next morning I called at the •' white house." and was in- 
formed, by the Secretaries, that it had been delermined to appoint 
me Surveyor of Boston, and that if I had no other business at 
"Washington, I might consider my business as completed, and my 
hopes attained. 



62 

It was amusing to witness, at Gadsby's, how the report of my 
dining with the Presiilent, and of my destination to high honors, 
elevated me in the estimation of the office-hunters who were then 
inmates of the house. On that day, I was invited to take wine, 
by half a dozen gentlemen I had never before heard of. The very 
slaves of the house passed me with an awe-stricken and reveren- 
tial humility ! Now, if my readers suppose that I did not mark 
these manifestations of low-minded cupidity with contempt and 
ridicule, they have mistaken my character. There was nothing 
which filled me with such disgust, and so complete a sense of the 
disgraceful business in which I was engaged. 

In another interview with the President's private advisers, I had 
the satisfaction to aid in arresting the blow which was aiming at 
the gallant U. S. Marshal at Boston, and I tlien handed to them 
a written plan for the ciuiciliation of the parties in that City. It 
proposed the appointment of Col. Orne to a lucrative office, and 
the sending abroad, as a national minister, another more distin- 
guished member of the Bulletin party. In these, and other con- 
versations, I thought I discerned that the President considered 
himself as having been deceived by the Statesman party, and that 
no great efforts were required to deprive them of their appoint- 
ments. But I stood their friend at this crisis of their fate, and on 
my return received the natural reward of such conduct, viz: the 
curses of both parties. 

The following paper was presented by me to Maj. Efonelson, a 
private Secretary of the President as a brief statement of my own 
claims to the patronage of the Government. I like to mention 
these matters, because they will instruct the young office-seekers 
how such things are managed at head quarters. 

Statement, presented to Major Donelson, the President's private 
Secretary, at Washington, 1st July, 1829. 

In 1823, 1 was opposed to J. Q,. Adams ; because I believed the 
story relative to his design in embracing democracy. It was proof of 
a corrupt politician, ready to do any dishonorable act to effect his pur- 
poses. Power ought not to be entrusted to such a man ; the Consti- 
tution would not be safe under his government. 

The event proved that this reasoning was just. For during 
Adams' and Clay's administration, inroads were made on the Consti- 
tution, which nothing but their expulsion from office could have 
remedied. 



63 

Although in 1823 — 4, 1 was a federalist and my relatives were all 
federalists, yet because 1 disdained treachery and loved my country 
better than my party, I voted against J. Q,. Adams. In Medfield, 
Mass. (where I then lived,) the ticket in oppositionto Adams received 
2-3d9 ot' the votes. 

My affidavit relative to Mr, Adams' avowed motives for joining the 
democratic party, viz: — to effect its destruction, was Jirst published in 
Nov. 18-24; in consc(iuence of a call from the National Journal on 
the Boston Statesman, to produce a witness to that charge. The 
Statesman called on me as a witness, and although I foresaw years of 
persecution, desertion of friends and loss of business as the conse- 
quence, yet I instantly came forth at the summons. There could have 
been no interested motive in the case ; for the election by the people 
had passed, and as Mr. Crawford was then my favorite candidate and 
his prospects in the National Legislature but gloomy, I could have 
had no ho[)e of personal benefit. 

Witli the election of Adams by the Legislature, commenced my 
political attachment to Gen. Jackson. And it has never, for one 
moment, wavered ; — on the contrary, all my fears were dissi|)nted on 
an examination of his character, and I saw in him the man alone qual- 
ified to redress the injuries which the Constitution had suH'ered by the 
election of Adams ; — the man, to institute and perfect the great work 
of "reform" and restore the ancient simplicity and purity of the gov- 
ernment. What was first a political, soon became by the persecutions 
of the enemy, a personal attachment to the General. By his election, 
I felt assured, that a great political lesson would be taught, in all fu- 
ture time, to our statesmen, viz — that honesty is the best policy, in 
politics as well as morals. 

Therefore, during the years 1825 — 6 — 7, and 8, I advocated, every 
where, the cause of Jackson, in all honorable ways I could discover. 
My time, my resources, (trifling indeed, but all I had) my reputation 
were all devoted and periled in the holy cause. Jn Sept. 1828, I 
re-published my affidavit with additional evidence and an ardent ap- 

Eeal to the patriotism and honorable feelings of the yeomanry of the 
Tnion. I also wrote the address to the peo[)le of Massachusetts pub- 
lished in the Statesman on the eve of the election in Nov. • • 

Heaven has rewarded all our efforts and indicated its favour to this 
happy land, by the election of Jackson. If my statements and 
writings from 1824 to 1829, have at all aided in producing this glorious 
triumph, — God be praised for making me an instrument, however un- 
worthy and humble, in eflfecting his great and benevolent purposes ! 

Although I have lost, by my political opinions and ex«rtions, the 
favour of relatives, who have looked cold upon me, and remonstrated 
with me in vain ; — although I have excited the hatred of mv former 
political friends, and the hostility of the Adams party in Ma.ssachu- 
setts, whose persecutions 1 have still to eniiure ; yet my fervor and 
devotion to the cause have lost none of their energy ; and never will, 
till all that the cause requires to be done, shall be fully accomplished. 

On the evenin;^ before my return to Massachusetts, I called to 
take leave ol" the President. Havin;; purchased a small framed 
portrait of the " Father of hio country, the immortal Washington," 



64 

I pasted on tlie back of it the foliowir.g words,—" the portrait of 
General fFashitigton, Isi President, for General Jackson, 7th 
President of the United States. Similis simili gaudet, — present- 
ed bii," <^'c. I gave it (o the President, and requested that he 
would hang it yp in his sleeping apartment, so that his last 
and earliest meditations might be, on the glorious example, and 
character, of the purest patriot, and greatest man, the world had 
ever known. He read it wilh emoticm, and promised to grant 
my request And I then lianded him the following note. 

Washington City, 2d July, 1829. 
To General Andrew Jackson, } 

President of the United States. J 
Sir, — I cannot return to Massachusetts without attempting to ex- 
press my sincere gratitude for the many evidences of your favour 
which I have received since my arrival. Nothing however was re- 
quired to increase my zeal in your service, and my devotion to the 
cause, of which you are the illustrious head. 

Hereafter, should you think my poor abilides, united to an ardent 
desire for your happiness and glory, could be advantageously exerted 
in your service in any part of the world, let me assure you that I 
dedicate myself to any object, (for it cannot but be g-ooc? and honorable 
if you arc its patron,) without the least regard to consequences or to 
any mercenary considerations. 

May Almighty God have you in his holy keeping, and make your 
civil govern tnent as glorious and as happy for our beloved Country, as 
has been your military command. 

With j)rofound respect, 

I have the honor ever to remain, 

your devoted servant. 

On returning to Dedham, I determined to evince my zeal and 
gratitude, by establishing a Jackson newspaper in the County of 
Norlolk. I patroled the county, visiting every town, and nearly 
every <lwelling house, and in three weeks, collected in a county 
where the votes fur Jackson, on the previous November, were only 
about 400, — many hundred subscribers. I then, in expectation of 
my appointment as Surveyor in January, sold my law office, 
library, and unfinished business iv the Courts, and gave a bond to 
the purchaser that I u-ould practice law no more in that County. 
I commenced the business of an P'ditor of a newspaper, but in 
my contract with the printer, reserved only a small sum per an- 
num, as the editor's compensation. And this I did, in the confi- 
tlence that golden oJ/icu7^ prospects awaitei! me: that I should 
never be de|iendant on the paper for my support; and that the 



6:") 

Slim reserved would atlcrwarils secure the services of an able 
editor, who followed some oilier business in the town. My 
reader-* 'vill perceive that I had thus nearly ruined myself, it my 
hope of the Surveyorship (ailed. 

Well, many months passed, and I heard nothinj;; relative to my 
expectations. I wrote to the Secretary of the Treasury, and his 
answer was encouraffins;. But, bcins; more intent on contributing; 
to the happiness of the President of my alVections, than in look- 
ing out tor my own interest, and fearinj^ that, possibly, his 
pr«)inise to me might occasion him some embarrassment, 1 wrote 
to him the following letter. 

Dedham, Mass. 16th December, 1929. 
To the President, 

Sir, — With tinich reluctance, I would recall to your rcmoinbrnncc my 
visit to Wiisiiiiiirtoii in July last, and the kind hearing you then gave to 
my request to succeed IMr. Gerry, ;is Surveyor of the Port of Boston. 

After my return, I had the honor to receive a letter (as 1 supi)osert 
with your knowledge) from the Secretary of the Treasury, on the 
same subject ; from which I also drew auguries of success. Acting 
upon this conviction, I relinquished my professional pursuits and pre- 
pared to enter on my new duties. 

By the advice of my friends. Majors Donelson and Lewis, I have not 
communicated my hopes to my political friends in this quarter; and 
ronsequenily (hey, (ignorant of my wishes,) are now making applica- 
tion in favour of anotiier person. Thus 1 find myself compelled to 
lay my cause before you, honored Sir, and to appeal to that jaou-er, on 
which indeed I have reposed all my hopes, and to which 1 should be 
most gratified to owe their accomplishinont. 

My recommendations, with some account of my past services and 
trials, are in the hands of Major Donelson. I do not recur to them 
a.s to claim.f for reward ; tor I have done only my dutij in the late 
struggle for the Constitution. And novv, honoreil Sir, although 1 
have, perhaps unadvisedly, jilaccd niysrlt' in a situation where disap- 
pointment would be peculiarly tlisastmus, yet as I regard your interest 
and happiness far beyond my own, — if this renewal of my request for 
the olHce of Surveyor will occasion you any annoyance or iiiterfi?re 
with any more agreeable arrangement, then let disappointment come 
upon me. For truly, Hf I know my own heart,) the consciousness of 
adding at all to your happiness, will be the most grateful reward of 
my services and suflerings. 

I have the honor ever to remain. 

Your devoted servant, 

Early in I80O.I received the astuumliug intelligence of my prob- 
able <lestruction,bv the appointment (d' General McNeil to the very 
office I had been expecling with so much confidence, viz: — the 
Surveyorship of Host<»n. .Mtliough I then thought myself ruined, 
9 



66 

yet my attachment to the President was so sincere that I did 
not murmur at his decision. And having; heard of the "gallant 
bearing" of the General on the fields of Chippewa and Bridge- 
water, and that he had recently aided in concluding a very ad- 
vantageous treaty for the U. States with the Indians on our 
Western frontier, I expressed, in my newspaper, a generous 
approbation of his appointment. It is however remarkable, that 
my own claims and situation were so completely overlooked at 
Washington, that the Seci^tary of the Treasury actually called 
upon General McNeil and invited his acceptance of the office ; 
promising, that in the event of any vacancies in the superior 
appointments of the Boston Custom House, he should be pro- 
moted. And on the strength of this promise, the General resign- 
ed his post as a Brigadier in the army of the U. States. A va- 
cancy did soon afterwards occur by the decease of Geii. Boyd, 
the Naval officer, but it was not filled by Gen. McNeil, who still 
remains the Surveyor of the District. 

With a heavy heart, I continued my labours for the benefit of 
the Jackson party, in my newspaper, with considerable success. 
W^e gave in Norfolk County in April 1830, nearly 900 votes for 
Judge Morton as Governor, a larger number, 1 think, than he has 
ever since received. The Address to the people of the County, 
by the Jackson Conventiim, previous to the election, was written 
by me. And during all this time, and long afterwards, although 
my personal attachments were with the Bulletin party, yet, from 
a sense of duty and a devoted respect for the President, I sided 
with the Statesman party, and deprecated in undisguised terms, 
the warfare that continued to rage between them ; which, at this 
period, was much more vigorously carried on by the former, as 
they were the disappointed, than by the latter, the successful party. 
As a manifestation of my sentiments at this period, my readers 
must pardon me, for inserting the following copy of a letter to a 
respectable gentleman of the Bulletin party. 

My dear Sir, — I have heard from Boston, (through Mr. ) certain 

information which gives me much pain, viz: — that you consider me as 
a deserter from the Bulletin party. As I value your good opinion 
highly, and profess to act on principles of good faith and honor, you 
must permit me to disprove this suspicion. 

You may remember, that, on the day previous to my departure 
for Washington, I called at your house ex[iressly for the purpose of 



fi7 

ort'eiing myself as the bearer oi' your foniiiiiiiiicatioiis. Vou did not 
lhen,nr at any previous interview, suite to me the y'ltwi^ o( your party , 
and tlie otdy time in whicli I ever met witli iliem ns ;i hody, was at 
Kaneuil Hall on tlie 4tli March. Before that tlav, my acqnaintanro 
with you was formed in the Statesinan office, when you were actios; 
with Messrs. Henshaw and others in zealous exertions for the Jaeksoti 
cause. At the dinner 1 was neither ititnxhiced to General L. nor 
Colonel O. It was the mlilress of (Jen. L. on that occasion, liar- 
moni/ingso fully with my own sentiments, that increased my desire to 
form his acquaintance. I was hap|)y in cllectins it, and from Gen. L. 
alone I learned the views of the party of which I then considered him 
the leader. 

I departed for \V'"asliinf^ton without any instructions of moment 
from you, and firmly l)elievin<,', that union was the grand object of all 
our wishes. The letter which I wrote you in a few days after my 
arrival proves that such wa- my belief and sentiments. 

On my return I immediately called at your house, and then, for the 
first time, learned that I had utterly mistaken your objects, and had 
unintentionally rather obstructed than advanced theni. You then in- 
formeil me, for the first time, that your party would not be satisfied 
unless either Mr. Henshaw or Mr. Greene were removed from office! 
Perhaps you may remember the surprise expressed in my manner oti 
receiving this information. In truth, my dear Sir, had I known that 
such were your views before going South, I shoidd have been obliged 
to decline taking with me your valuable letter of introiluctiou. For 
it seemed to me, that you asked what the President could not grant 
without destroying the confidence of his friends in all parts of the 
country. You impliedly arraigned his judgment and impartiality, in 
asking so great a sacrifice, and it seemed to me, that loyalty to him 
required a submission to far greater evils, than your party suffered, 
rather than to demand of him the public retraction of his appoiiit- 
ments, the public sacrifice of one portion of his friends in favor of 
another portion. Such were my feelings, and they have not changed. 

At Washington, I omitted no ojiportunity of expressing a sincere 
regard to yourself and Gen. L. Imleed it was the burthen of my 
discourse. That it was not inefi'eclual time will discover. At my 
last interview with you, you told me that Gen. I^. and myself agreed 
in opinions. To know this, confirmed me in the propriety of my own 
sentiments. 

With these views, and after my long service in the cause, you may 
imagine the agony I suflered, by observing the discontetit of' some of 
your friends, which had hitherto been confined to their own bosoms, 
at last bursting out in a coidlagration of all their hojjes, by a public 
newspaper warfare. This act, I confess, would dissolve my allegiance 
to any party /jro/t'Si/zi;' regard to the President. How is it jiossible 
to i)rescrve loyalty to him, and thus hold up his measures to public 
contempt.' Is filial piety consistent wiili rejiroaches against a Parenti* 
Can political attachment exist with [lublic crimination of the f.eader.'* 
No, my dear Sir, we know it cannot. The fust symptom is murmured 
discontent, the next open complaint, liien denunciation, and at last, 
mutiny. These are the steps by which partisans desceml from their 
allegiance. • 

I belong to no jiarty but the .Jackson party. Kor our illustrious 
Chief I have for yoars devoted my time, property and talents, and |>ut in 



68 

jeopardy my reputation. Injuries received in his cause, have convert- 
ed my pohtical into a personal regard. I recognize as of the party to 
which I belong, every man who is anxious for the glory and happiness 
of Jackson and the prosperity of his Administration. And my heart 
tells me, that those who publicly utter dissatisfaction, and think more 
of their own than of his interest, cannot long maintain their attach- 
ment to his service. I know you to be heart and soul a Jacksonian, 
and while I admire your devotedness to your friends, lament that it 
may compromise your higher affection. 
Yours truly, &c. 

T have in my possession copies of a great number of my letters, 
addressed to others of the Bulletin party, and to influential j^en- 
tlemen at Washino;ton, breathing the same spirit; and 1 continu- 
ed to entertain the same opinions of the " Statesman leaders," 
until I became a public officer with them at Boston, when I 
'^ found them out." I mean to say, that although I never thought 
them deserving, (when compared to many other members of the 
Jackson party in Boston and the State,) of liie appointments 
which they obtained, yet, having' been appointed, respect for the 
President required the submission of the party ; but I did not 
know till afterwards, the intolerance, cupidity and arrogance of 
which they were capable. 

One morning in April, 1830, when sitting disconsolate in my 
editorial chair and gloomily meditating on my scattered hopes, 
Mr. Charles G. Greene entered, and said that General McNeil 
the new Surveyor, iiad arrived in Boston, and desired to see me. 
I rode to the City Avith Mr. Greene. Gen. McNeil met me at 
the Statesman office ; a vast gentleman, but of remarkable sym- 
metry of person, nearly seven feet in height, and looking like 
one of the sons of Anak. 1 passed before his spacious penum- 
bra, and attracted his approbation. He determined to appoint 
me his Deputy, for which I thanked him, and I was made a 
Deputy Surveyor on the spot. I had put myself in such a position 
that I could refuse nothing, adequate to my maintenance. The 
General was '' a clever fellow," in the A'eiv-England sense, and 
an honorable man, distinguished for better services than those of 
party. I respected him, therefore, and determined to act as his 
disinterested counsellor and sincere friend. 

Let m}' youthful reader reflect on the case I have been describ- 
in"". Here was a young man, engaged in an honorable profes- 
sion, (which already yielded him a sufficient income, and prom- 



69 

ised future independeiice as well as disliiitlioii,) led away by 
that jack-o'lanteni, (a baletul meteor,) the desire of office, to tlie 
gradual desertion uf all his better hopes and prospects ; madly 
plunging into the arena of party with "a zeal without knowledge;" 
deceived by false expectations, and selling oil" his library and his 
business; binding liimself hand and foot, and througli sheer ne- 
cessity, putting himself at the mercy of any ordinary patron ; 
obtaining an inferior appointment, and subjecting himself to all 
kinds of exti rlion, as all public oflicers inevitably do; sinking 
under the intolerable fati;;ue and confinement of labours as se- 
vere and as unintellectual as those of a horse in a bark -mill ; 
observing his mind and body gradually decaying; conipelled to 
endure in silence, the '• insolence of authority ;" receiving his 
wages of slavery monthly, and feeling that one dollar, fairly won 
in lionorable competition by superior talent and industry, was 
uorlh a hundred, dealt out as they deal out, "at feeding time," 
food to the animals in a menagerie; conscious of the contempt 
of the free jjeople by whom he was surrounded ; and at last losing 
the only consolation which could have sustained him under such 
manifold hunuliations, in the conviction that he had aided in 
brin<jin"; confusion and misrule on his country I 

If there is any situation more completely wretched than this, 
I am ignorant of it. And yet such is the fate of all the inferior 
officers of the Customs, if they happen to be de^erving of a bet- 
ter. My young reader, be assured, that when you exchange your 
present occupation for a place under Government, you recklessly 
Hing away your happiness, and voluntarily accept ui" misery and 
degradation. 



CHAPTER VI. 



Befurm. 

"Jack Cade. Away with him, I say: hang him with his pen and 
inkhorii about his neck."— Slialcspeare. 



Having brought down my personal narrative to the period of my 
appointment as Deputy Surveyor of Boston, (on the 2()th April 
'30,) I must retrace my steps a little, to show what our heroes of 
the Statesman faction had been doing. Dunlap had been " regu- 
larly made" District Attorney; Nathaniel Greene had persuaded 
Mr. Barry, the new Postmaster General, to give him the Post 
Office, and Henshaw had obtained the President's nomination to 
the Senate, as Collector of Boston. Mr. Brod head's hopes had 
for a time been " sus. per coll." and he therefore plied with his 
wonted industry, the character 1st ic symbols of his trade, — the 
shears and goose: while Mr. Simpson, in the midst of his feathers, 
meditated on the lightness and vanity of human pursuits. 

Greene glided noiselessly into his new office, and in due time, 
politely showing the old Postmaster the back door, quietly installed 
himself as the chief of the Clerks in his Department. Owing 
however to the newness of the situation, and his being unaccus- 
tomed to the duties and routine of the office, some confusion and 
carelessness were detected by close observers. The Bulletin party 
complained openly and bitterly, that their letters addressed to dis- 
tinguished gentlemen at Was-hington, either did not arrive there 
at all, or not until after the subject of which they treated, had 
been settled. Some statements were made in relation to this 
orrievance in the Bulletin, to which Greene published a reply, de- 
claring that previously to assuming the honors of his office, he 
served some time under the old Posimaster to acquire the requisite 
information, and that therefore he was not responsible if accidents 
had occurred. We cannot be too suspicious of charges emanating 
from the violence of party contention ! Greene did not imme- 
diately remove any, or but very few of his Clerks. 



71 

Nol so His llo:ior llic Colleclor, the admirer »if thai "child of 
revolution" the great Napoleon. The sword ol authority was no 
sooner in his liands, (although, as liis appaiiitrnent was not yet 
confirmed by the Senate, it ought to have been considered a tem- 
porary trust,) than lie wielded it wiili a sternness and contempt of 
official life, worthy of Nadir Shah, or any other sanguinary despot. 
In a few days, the area of the Custom House was strewed with 
the heads of decapitated public oflicers, who had presumed to en- 
tertain political opinions ditTerent from his own, and his master's 
at Washington. y\s the victini was led to execution, he exclaimed 
" am I not an American citizen, — a republican, a faithful oflicer ?" 
The fatal nod was given, and his liead rolled upon the pavement. 
Some of them were less mercifully treated ; they were reserved to 
be tortured on the rack of suspense, and having for months en- 
dured its torments, were finally released from their misery by the 
fatal stroke. Others were insidiously .smiled upon, and assured 
of favor; these becoming infatuated, rushed into tli(; embraces of 
the party, and felt the concealed dagger piercing their busoms. — 
The official existence of the petty-officers of the Government was 
as wantonly sacrificed, as was human life, " in the reign of terror," 
by the conceited, cowardly and inhuman Robespierre. 

The Statesman, and the spaniel presses under its influence, who 
have been taught to bark at the word of command, say that the 
Collector is the head man of the parly ; — they mean, he is the 
Heaihmun of the parly. 

There is a natural propensity to lan^ili at ihe unfortunate and 
applaud the successful. Many, therefore, being at a distance from 
the scene, considered this general sweep of the old public servants, 
as capital sport. A nearer view of its consequences would have 
excited more generous emotions It is undoubtedly true, that the 
principle of "rotation in office" is engrafted on the system of our 
Government ; that the power which goes out from the people, 
ought to be frequently recalled, so that none entrusttni with author- 
ity, may ever forget the source from whence it was derived. And 
perhaps it would be ju.'^l and sound policy, to proliibit by law, any 
of the well jiaid public officers from holding their offices more 
than eight years. The public servants, who have fattened on 
salaries of from 2.S(I() to GOOO dollars per annum, in eight 
years, ought, by common prudence and economy, to have saved a 



72 

comfortable subsistence for the rest of their lives. But (o extend 
this rule to the petty officer, whose monthly pay hardly maintains 
his family ; vvho has faithfully devoted the better part of his life to 
his humble duties, without a possibility of accumulating a fund for 
the support of his old age ; to thrust out such a man on the bleak 
world, while yet fully competent to perform his official services, 
merely because he dared to exercise his birth-right as an American 
citizen and vote for the man of his choice, is a most monstrous 
act of injustice and barbarity. Actually taking off his head and 
the heads of his wife and children, exterminating his whole fam- 
ily, would be less cruel and inhuman. It would be perfectly right 
that Mr. Hcnshaw, with a salary and perquisites amounting to 
$;jO()() per annum, should, after receiving in 8 years $40,000 of the 
people's money, be required by them to surrender his trust; — but 
that A. B. an Inspector, who had received his 3 dollars a day, or C. 
D. a Clerk, who had received only 700 dollars a year, and who had 
performed much more laborious services than Mr. Henshaw, should 
be sent fjrth like tiagar, into the wilderness of penury and wretch- 
edness, is a construction of the law of "rotation in office," which 
the generosity and justice of the people will never sanction. Cut 
off the lieads of the tall poppies, lest they grow too lofty and im- 
perious, but suffer the lowly plants of more real benefit to the 
srardeiier, to live and thrive in their humble beds. 

But UiRSP last were the victims of the new Collector's vindictive 
temper, and party violence. Jackson cut off all above him, and he 
cut off all below. It has been asserted in the Statesman, that poli- 
tical opinions were not the cause of this proscription. It is false, 
as applied to the Custom House at Boston ; and I now believe else- 
where. I know, that the election of Jackson having been ascer- 
tained, the under officers of the Customs vvho had embraced his 
cause, (and they were numerous,) were in the daily habit of threat- 
ning their brother officers, of the opposite party, with a '^speedy 
reckoniv^.'^ The day of reckoning came, in that messenger of 
wrath, the new Collector, and th.e predictions of his partisans were 
verified. And afterwards, when I was a public servant in the Cus- 
tom House, I heard continual regrets that so many, (some half 
dozen,) of the Adams-men, were spared. It is indeed true, that 
when the generous and enlightened body of merchants of the City, 
witnessing such an indiscriminate and wholesale extirpation of the 



73 

under officers, (who, for years, had facilitated witl> skill and des- 
patch their commercial transactions with the office,) raised a 
great excitement; that then, the Collector endeavoured to show 
other than political delinquency, to excuse his despotic exercise of 
temporary authority. But this icns nit false. The officers he turn- 
ed out, were quite equal in morals and ability, to those he put in. 
General Dearborn the Ex-Cullector was, by general consent, an 
admirable officer, attentive to his duty, — gentlemanly in his man- 
ners, peculiarly urbane and conciliatory to the mercantile interest, 
mild and affisctionate to the inferior officers, gaining their attach- 
ment and, therefore, necessarily, their best services, — and conduct- 
ing as the chief of the department in a manner to attract the respect, 
confidence and regard of all who had intercourse with him as a 
public officer. And as to his judgment, and fidelity to his trust, it 
is in my power to raise a monument to his honor, which I do with 
great satisfaction, although in the political contest of 1828 — 9, I 
was his determined opponent, and " did him some harm," in my 
newspaper, in his county. His officers in the Boston Custom House, 
who were spared by Henshaw, were, when I became acquainted 
with them, in 1830, beyond all dispute, the most intelligent, indus- 
trious, faithful, and moral, of all the inmates of the department. 
It struck me, as singular and deserving of enquiry, why all the 
Adams officers who handled the public money, were retained, while 
the out door officers, were unceremoniously dismissed ? The ques- 
tion was in a short time solved. In conversation with one "of the 
party," he stated, that on the whole, he did not regret that Marshal 
Harris was continued in office : — that great sums of money passed 
through his hands; — and that if a Jacksonman held the office, and 
ran off with the cash, it would bring indelible disgrace on '^he 
party^^ ', whereas if Marshal Harris happened to " clear out" the 
party would be exonerated, and could bear down, in overwhelming 
terms, on their political adversaries ! It is worthy of remark, that 
in the Custom House, there were spared from the axe of proscrip- 
tion, the Bond Clerk, the Cash Clerk, the Permit Clerk, the Clear- 
ance Clerk, and one or two moro Clerks, all receivers of the pub- 
lic monies, while nearly every officer who received his pay from the 
publicchest, but touched none of the public revenue, was discharged! 
It looked very much as if the Collector dared not trust his own 
party ! And he knew them ! 
10 



74 

While I was aa inmate of the Custom House one of the money 
Clerks resigned. Of course there were hundreds of applications 
for his place. As one evening I walked up High street with two 
of the members of the Statesman party, one of them said, " we 
have a notion of appointing Mr. Parker, a son of Chief Justice 

Parker, in the place of Mr. . The fact is the Commonwealth 

Insurance Company," (composed of the Statesman party) " has a 
case coming before the Supreme Court, involving the sum of 13,000 
dollars. Now, we have no influence with the Supreme Court, who 
are nearly all federalists : and it is good policy to interest the Chief 
Justice's feelings, by patronizing his family." Fudge, I exclaim- 
ed, you might as well turn the sun from its course, as the pure and 
incorruptible mind of Judge Parker from the course of justice. 
" Oh, you don't know how such matters operate on all men's minds ; 
no man is insensible to his interest." Why, said I, the Judge 
would not flatter Neptune for his trident, nor Jupiter for his power 
to thunder." " You don't know how these matters are managed, 
nor their eftects," was the reply. Mr. Parker (an excellent officer,) 
was accordingly appointed, but the Commonwealth Insurance Com- 
pany lost their case. 

Mr. Parker is now the Cash Clerk of the Custom House. The 
Collector probably thought of those distinguished Massachusetts 
democrats, Skinner and Bidwell, when he determined to select the 
son of an old federalist for his cash keeper. 

In speaking of this good and great man, (the late Chief Jus- 
tice,) " my heart grows liquid as I write, and I could pour it out like 
water." Massachusetts never had a Judge of a more pure, just, 
and benevolent mind. He engrossed the confidence of all parties, — 
won the love of all classes of people ; — was the kind patron of all 
the younger members of the bar, and enforced his decisions, as 
much by the elevation of his character, as by the soundness of his 
legal knowledge. My gratitude for his paternal encouragement, 
when I made my first argument before his Court, will glow in my 
bosom as long as life throbs there. 

Collector Henshavv, finding himself unable to quell the excite- 
ment of the mercantile community, caused by his intolerant per- 
secution of the under officers of his department, — in the peculiar 
spirit of his character turned about, and denounced the merchants 
of Boston, to the President, as a gang of bankrupts and swindlers. 



75 

Every merchant in Boston will remember his '* letter" to the 
President, and has probably recognised, in various subsequent 
writings in the Boston Statesman and Post, similar efforts to stig- 
matize this class of citizens. The same pen which wrote the 
"iiifammis letter,^' wrote also the communication to the Washing- 
ton Globe, at the recent period of commercial distress, stating that 
aristocrats ought to fail, — that when reduced to poverty, they be- 
came democrats, and aided the party ; — and that the greater the 
number so stricken down, by the measures of the Government, the 
greater would be the force of democracy in Massachusetts. I am 
certain, that this shameful communication was from the Collector's 
pen. I can detect his style in a hundred papers, from all parts of 
the Union, which may contain a single article, written by himself. 
It is a compound, of one part of James 1st, to two of Jack Cade. 
I firmly believe, that the unnatural hatred and contempt which 
the President seems to entertain for the merchants, is in a great 
degree owing to these, and other similar communications, from the 
Collector; and he probably considers that one of the public bene- 
fits likely to accrue from a war with France, would be the certain 
ruin of the whole class. On their ruin, would follow the headlong 
destruction of all enterprise, public spirit, and national liberty. 
There is not in New-England a single great literary, benevolent, 
or charitable institution, that was not founded by a merchant, and 
has not been, and is not now in a great measure, sustained by 
merchants. In all ages, they have been the first, most active, and 
most determined assertors of liberty. It cost Alexander a greater 
sacrifice of time, money, labour, and human life, to conquer the 
little City of Tyre, than to overturn the Persian Empire. Com- 
mercial Carthage, was the most formidable enemy of Rome. Spain, 
in the height of her glory, could not subdue the merchants of the 
United Provinces. And Bonaparte, with all Europe at his feet, 
and millions of men and money at his command, was conquered, 
deposed, and committed to prison by the merchants of the little 
Island of Britain. Whenever an American President resolves on 
the overthrow of the liberties of the country, his first measures 
will bo directed against the merchants, as the most wealthy, most 
(|uick-sigiiied, most enterprising, and most resolute of all the ene- 
mies of despotism. 

It has been asserted and rc-assortcd in the Statesman and Post, 



76 

that the U. States officers in Boston, opposed to the present Ad- 
ministration, are more numerous than its partisans. This was 
intended for effect abroad, for there is no person of intelligence 
and observation at home, who does not know its utteV falsity. In- 
deed there is not another paper in the country, which would dare, 
with so full a knowledge of the facts, to publish so palpable and 
gross a falsehood, with such shameless effrontery. While I was 
one of the initiated of the party, we every few days were com- 
pelled to " crack our sides" over statements in the Post and States- 
man, so notoriously false, that the very audacity with which they 
were published was supremely ridiculous. Now the fact is, that 
excepting the money-clerks before mentioned, and the Jackson 
officers of the Custom House, not a man was spared, unless from 
political or interested motives. Not a single monument of mag- 
nanimity was suffered to stand, when the hurricane of proscription 
swept through its halls. Of the score of Inspectors, two were 
saved ; one of them the brother of a leading Jacksonman in a 
neighboring County, the other (an excellent officer and most wor- 
thy man,) a distinguished and influential member of the Baptist 
Church; and as Mr. Simpson was a Baptist, he was rescued from 
the general destruction. It was the same in all the other corps of 
officers; none have been spared but for similar reasons. And at 
this moment, of the seventy officers attached to the Custom House, 
I know not one, (with the exception of the money clerks,) who 
openly opposes the Administration ; I do not believe there is one 
who does not profess a preference for Martin Van Buren as the 
successor of Jackson. It was the case when I retired in April 
last, and I feel confident when I solemnly declare, that I left not a 
single open opponent of Van Buren behind me. My readers may 
be assured, that if Van Buren is the party candidate, every Gov- 
ernment officer in Boston will not only vote for him, but spend 
months of his time, which he has sold to the people for his wages, 
in electioneering for his success. I have no doubt that the same 
state of things now exists in every Custom House in the United 
States! The Post Offices are not yet alt secured, but I learn that 
they will be, before the period of united action arrives. Then the 
40,000 United States officers, scattered over the States, will act 
together as one man; — they will compose the majority of the grand 
A'tttional Convention, which is to nominate the democratic candi- 



77 

date ; that candidate is already agreed upon, and on his nomina- 
tion, this wliole army of mercenaries, " tlie abomination of deso- 
lation standing in the most holy place" — will simultaneously fling 
out the standards of Van Burcn to the winds, and march onward 
to victory and to pillage. They even now feel certain of success, 
and prepare for the approaching conflict and conquest over the 
people, with the same calmness and confidence, and contempt for 
their enemy, as the 40,000 Swedes under Charles Xllth invaded 
the Russian Empire. May they find a Pultowal 

We have seen the operation of "Reform," in driving out the 
old servants of the people ; let us now enquire what sort of men 
succeeded to their places. I solemnly aver, and I challenge in- 
vestigation into the fact, that the whole " pulk of Cossacks," which 
dashed with wild "hurras" upon the spoils of office in Boston, was 
composed either of active political writers and laborers in the pre- 
ceding election, or of family connexions of some of the Cabal, or 
of their debtors who were unable to discharge their debts, but as 
public stipendiaries! With the two latter classes, it was a matter 
of no consequence whether they had been Jacksonmen or not, 

future conformity was all that was required. Nor was the taint of 
federalism always an objection ; nor even the horrible enormity of 
being British born. I readily admit that the old officers who in 
the conflict of 1828, (although serving under Mr. Adams, and a 
Collector zealously attached to his interest,) with a noble indepen- 
dence openly avowed their preference for Gen. Jackson, arc gen- 
tlemen deserving of high respect and commendation. And, further, 
that many of the "new comers" are respectable men, and dili- 
gent and faithful officers. Many of them I most sincerely regard. 
But all this is nothing to the purpose; the merits of individuals, 
are no excuse for the madness and wickedness of party. The 
people ought to be informed in what manner their servants con- 

• strue the great principles of their Government, — and should un- 
derstand the motives and reasons of their acts, — and whether the 
power entrusted to them has been generously and justly used, or 
cruelly and basely abused. And when the people discover, that 
the exposition I have been making, and other expositions of illus- 
trious statesmen, to whom I am as nothing, are true, I am confident 
that the political illusion, under which they have so long labored, 
will soon be dissipated, and they will awake to a sense of the im- 



78 

minent perils which threaten their liberties, "as a lion rouses him- 
self and shakes the dew-drops from his mane." For, (recently 
said a great statesman and patriot,) "when I distrust the intelli- 
gence and virtue of the people, I must distrust every thing, the 
very possibility of a popular government, or of the existence of 
liberty." 

The scene I have been describing, was not a salutary " Reform" 
of the abuses, which in the progress of time, had crept into our 
institutions, but a most daring and dangerous attack on the very 
foundations of those institutions; not the genial warmth of the 
sun bringing forth fresh verdure, flowers and fruits, but a tornado, 
"instinct with fire and nitre," rushing over the land, and marking 
its course with ruin and desolation. 



CHAPTER VII. 



Party Organization. 



" 'Tia the times' plague, when madmen lead the blind." 



The " Headsman" of the Jackson party in Boston, having pur- 
ged the Custom House, and filled it with his retainers, he and his 
confederates next turned their attention to confirming their domin- 
ion over the Jackson party of the State, and to holding in check 
every ambitious or refractory country member, who might, at some 
future time, defy their authority, and in the exuberance of his pa- 
triotism, — like Jeshurun, — " wax fat and kick." Having constituted 
themselves a Central power, and being armed with the influenceof 
the Government, by the possession of the most valuable offices in 
its gift, they prepared to put a bridle into the mouth of the de- 
mocracy of Massachusetts, so that thereafter, they could mount 



79 

and ride it, either at a canter, trot, pace, or iralk-, as best suited 
their policy and interests. Knowing it was impossible that Judge 
Morton could ever be elected Governor of the State, because all 
who regarded him as an unrijiht mafjistrate would not consent to 

o loo 

dispense with his valuable yervices on the Bench, and because the 
genuine democrats never would yield to the violation of their prin- 
ciples by voting for a judicial olficer while he continued to act as 
such ; — they, (as their first movement,) determined that the Judge 
should be the perpetual candidate of their party. It was apparent, 
that while the Jackson party in Massachusetts was feeble and con- 
temptible in strength and numbers, they had a fair chance of keep- 
ing at its head. And therefore, it was represented at Washington, 
and to the great leaders of the party in the Stales, that it would be 
of peculiar benefit to the cause, if old " Hartford Convention," 
"old federal" Massachusetts, was suffered to remain in opposition 
to Jackson's Administration. She had been opposed to Jefferson 
and Madison, and by being kept in opposition to Jackson, it 
would prove that his Administration was decidedly democratic .' 
It is lamentable, that so excellent a man, and so popular a magis- 
trate as Judcre Morton, should have suffered himself to be made 
the dupe of this miserable conspiracy. I declare my belief, with a 
firm conviction of its truth, that the Statesman party never inten- 
ded he should be the Governor of this Commonwealth; and that 
if at any time they had suspected his chance was looking too 
favourable, they would, if possible, have defeated him by their own 
votes! As an evidence of this fact, and of their determination to 
keep the party "conveniently small," let me state that in February 
1830, I was a guest at the supper of the Washington Society, at 
the Exchange Coffee House. I arrived late in the eveiiiiig, and 
was conducted to the table by a member of the "Cabal." 'J'iiere 
were about 70 persons at the feast, and my conductor on entering 
the hall took occasion to say, "here you sec a small but faithful 
body of our troops in Boston ; they are all mechanics and laborers 
except zee few who lead ihein. The Jackson party is lur^^e enougk 
in Boston; — " the fewer men, the greater share of honors." We 
do not wish a larger party in lhi« City ; every addition brings with 
it some damned curse, who immediately enters into competition 
with us for the "loaves and fishes;" low, we consider as one of 
us, and don't be concerned, you will get something bye and bye. 



80 

Let us have as many of the countrymen to join us as we can ; — 
we can manage them, but damn the Boston auxiliaries.'" I can 
prove, that the same sentiments were expressed, to at least jive 
different gentlemen, by the same Boston Jacksonian, at about this 
same period ! 

And further ; when some time afterwards, (while I was a mem- 
ber of the Custom House,) Henry Lee, Esq. then supposed to be 
friendly to Jackson, was nominated as Representative to Congress, 
and I engaged with great zeal in his cause, by my pen and by 
personal exertions, I was informed by the Collector, that 1 was 
doing a most mischievous act; — "that ive did not want a great 
Jackson party in Boston, nor the introduction of federalists into 
the party ; they would only overrun us, and take the control of the 
party into their hands !" 

Let any Jacksonman who is at all sceptical on this subject, read 
the Statesman from 1S29 to 1834, and mark the course of the 
party and its votes in Boston during that period. The determina- 
tion to have only a small Jackson party in the City, was so suc- 
cessfully pursued, that in 1832, the Jackson ticket for !*enators for 
Suffolk, received only 300 votes, notwithstanding the sagacious 
and managing Mr. Simpson had consented to blazon it with his 
name. Yet there has been no time since Jackson^s election, when 
1500 Jackson votes might not have been polled in Boston, if it had 
been the object of the party managers, and proper and efficient 
measures had been adopted. This is manifest from several facts, 
fresh in the recollection of the citizens. Henry Lee in 1830, re- 
ceived (I think) 2500 votes for Representative to Congress. Gen. 
Lyman, in 1830, for the same office, on the fiist trial 700, when 
C. G. Greene the other Jackson candidate, at the same time, receiv- 
ed 740 more ; — both, about 1500. On the next trial. Gen. Lyman 
received over 1200, although the Statesman party stationed Ctjs- 
tom House officers at the polls to instruct their own faction not to 
vote at all, or to vote for Mr. Gorham, the " opposition" candidate. 
General Lyman would have been elected, had not the Statesman 
party withheld their votes or voted for his opponent — ''the fede' 
ral candidate." Now this was done, because they perceived, that 
if General Lyman succeeded, he would immediately become the 
chief of the Jackson party in Boston, and, consequently, that 
Meir " occupation" would be "gone"; they would lose the com- 



81 

mand, and be merged in the general mass. The very nomination, 
at this time, of Mr. Charles G. Greene, the printer and ostensible 
editor of the Post atid Statesman, was intended to prevent the 
election of a Jackson Representative. He is a pleasant fellow, 
always very neatly dressed, and gentlemanly in his manners; and 
in intelligence, information and learning, is as well qualified to 
represent the City of Boston in Congress, as about 4000 out of the 
8000 voters, who have recently assembled there at the polls. More 
polished than "Pop Emmons," (a former candidate for City Rep- 
resentative to the State Legislature,) but less impressive in his 
appearance ; more methodical in his eloquence, but less impetuous 
and soul-stirring; more oracular in his manner, but less imagina- 
tive and poignant. Pop moved the risibles, Charles the auricles; 
Pop disturbed the epigastrium, Charles the sensorium ; Pop forced 
tears, (of laughter,) Charles, yawns!* 

The nomination of Mr. Greene was, I have no doubt, intended 
as an insult on the Jackson party of the City, and to keep them 
from the polls; and they felt it as such, every man of them, save 
the Custom House party and its retainers. 

To return to the plan of operation, by which the Statesman 
leaders succeeded in manacling the democracy of Massachusetts, 
Their next movement was to appoint, by their own authority, some 
gentleman supposed to be devoted to their interests, in every 
County of the State, as Chairman of a County Committee to be 
appointed by himself in that County. After he had thus selected 
his Committee, theij were to appoint some person in every town of 
the County, as a Chairman of a Town Committee, and he selected 
his associates. I had the honor to be commissioned as the Chair- 
man of the County Committee for Norfolk, and I performed my 
duties thoroughly in selecting my associates, and appointing Chair- 
men of Town Committees in every town in that County. My in- 
structions declare that " in case of the appointment of Postmasters^ 
or other officers, in which a town is immediately interested, the 



• The Oration delivered by this ire^tlcman in 1829 or '30, and published in 
the Stalesman oi/ii* own, icas not icritlen by himself, but by a genlleman 
vastly superior to any one of " tke parly," now in office in Boston,— in tal- 
entu, learninrr and eloquence, but whose merits they have hilht-rlo contrived 
to keep in the back-gronnd. 
11 



82 

Town Committee ought to express its views to the County Com- 
mittee, who, if they approve, may sanction it and send it to the 
Central State Committee, who will transmit the recommendations 
to Washington." Now, David Henshaw was the Chairman of 
this Central State Committee, and John K. Simpson, Andrew 
Dunlap and Nathaniel Greene, &c. his associates. Of course not 
a single appointment could be made in Massachusetts, without their 
sanction! They were the Government .' They g^ye away offices 
or withheld them, at their sovereign will and pleasure ! Fouche 
himself, could not have devised a more beautiful scheme of inter- 
nal police! It completely excluded the influence of every dis- 
tinguished Jacksonman in the State, and placed the whole power 
and influence of the party, in the hands of David Henshaw, the 
Collector of the Customs! 

If Martin Van Buren did not originate the plan, (and it bears 
the impress of his genius,) it is certain that he recognized and as- 
sented to it. I have before me a letter dated Sept. '29, from the 
Central State Committee to me as Chairman of the Norfolk Com- 
mittee, stating, that they had "addressed a letter to Mr. Van 
Buren recommending him to select for publishing the laws of the 
U. States, the Boston Statesman, the Worcester Republican, and 
the Pittsfield Sun." And requesting me, " forthwith to get my 
Committee to address Mr. Van Buren recommending this selec- 
tion." We "did this job" for them, and the above newspapers 
were selected. 

I remember that about this time, in conversation with a very 
distinguished democratic Jacksonian of Massachusetts, he told me 
that " he could not conjecture what the matter was at Washington; 
he thought he had, or ought to have some influence there; but 
nothing which he requested or recommended was granted. He 
believed he had lost all influence in that quarter." He had indeed ; 
it was all engrossed by Henshaw &, Co. ! 

Let us proceed to the next movement. Having determined to 
reduce the Boston Jackson party to nothing but a Custom House 
party, of a few hundreds, who vvoujd submit to their dictation in 
"passive obedience," the Statesman Cabal perceived the necessity 
of having a Jackson party somewhere in the State; because 
leaders without a party, Generals, Colonels and Majors thundering 
in the field without troops, would look very ridiculous. Accord- 



83 

« 

ingly, after a midnight conclave, they spawned a batch of news- 
papers, to enlighten the interior counties of the Stale. Case, of 
the Mercury, at Lowell, had the honor of being first ushered into 
editorial life. 

" Deformed, unfinish'd, sent before his time 
Into this breathing world, scarce half made up, 
And that so lamely and unfashionable, 
That the dogs bark'd at him." 

Worcester was gratified with the maintenance of another of the 
bantlings, and a very " sprightly child" he has proved. Another 
was sent to Lynn, but it was a feeble creature, and died in about 
two years afterwards. The fourth, which was deposited at Cape 
Ann, by feeding on clams and cod-fish, grew so froward a youth, 
that within a few months past he run away from his parents, and 
appointed the Whigs his guardians. 

Thus the Statesman Cabal held in its hands the reins of the 
party organization, and were the owners of its presses. All the 
ramifications of the party, centred in them ; all its numerous rays 
converged to a single focus of light and heat, — the Collector, who 
dispensed the genial influence to the benighted yeomanry of the 
State, through the newspapers under his control ! 

Armed with this power, the Cabal assumed the right of dictating 
to the democratic representatives of the people in the State Legis- 
lature, the course they were to pursue in their deliberations, and 
the candidates to be supported in the elections of their presiding 
oflicers. Any one, who will examine the Statesman and Post, for 
the past four years, will read certain advertisements, published usually 
three or four days before the meeting of the Legislature, like the 
following : — " Notice. The Democratic members of the Legisla- 
ture are requested to meet at the Statesman Office," (or "the De- 

t 

mocratic Reading Room,") "on the evening before the meeting of 
the Legislature, on business of importance." At this meeting, such 
members as are debased enough to attend, are required to re-ap- 
point the Cabal as the Central State Committee for the year ensu- 
ing ; and are then instructed in the duties expected of them during 
the session ; and if an appointment is in gestation they are made 
to subscribe the candidate's recommendations. They are then in- 
formed whom the Cabal have selected as the democratic candidates 
for the speaker of the House, Clerk, «Sic. &i.c. and these candidates 



84 

are always selected, not with the most remote possibility of their 
election, nor are they the most popular candidates, but with the 
design of acquiring for them reputation and influence at Washing- 
ton. In this way, three years ago, the democratic candidate for 
speaker of the House received only 29 votes, when, as it afterwards 
appeared, there were actually 88 Jackson members present 1 

And such are the democratic ''friends of the people .'" the especial 
patrons of their rights ! — " independent republicans I the revilers 
of federalism ! the boasted guardians of popular liberty ! — There 
never lived a federalist, who would have submitted, for a moment, 
to such degrading servility ; — as to be mingled with a herd, and 
driven with goads, wherever its conductor listed. Shame on such 
Representatives of the People J'^ A representative of a town con- 
taining a thousand of intelligent freemen, stealing to the States- 
man office, in the night time, to receive his political instructions, 
and consenting to be a pander of political cupidity and intoler- 
ance ! Let the people enquire into this matter, and brand the cul- 
prits with the infamy they deserve. 

But the work was not yet complete. The little political corps, 
which the Statesman leaders determined to keep up in Boston, was 
divided as it were, into platoons, and Custom House officers ap- 
pointed its sergeants and corporals. Thus the Collector was not 
only Commander in Chief of the whole political army of the State, 
but likewise Colonel of the household troops. This corps was 
admirably disciplined, and its common soldiers had no more to do 
with political affairs, except to discharge their votes when ordered, 
than had the Hessians, who fought against the Revolution in the 
question they were contesting. Every thing was managed by the 
"Leaders," by their staff, the Ward Committees, all picked men, 
and by the Custom House officers. Here is the usual mode of pro- 
ceedino-. Suppose that it is intended to nominate a Jackson can- 
didate to represent the City in Congress, and that the leaders dis- 
cover in the Boston party a preference for a gentleman not their 
own candidate, and of whom they do not approve. " A Notice" 
appears in the Post calling a meeting of " the Democratic Repub- 
licans of Boston at Democratic Hall on evening next, to fill 

vacancies in the Ward Committee." As this is an object of no 
importance, none but they who are let into the real object of the 
meeting attend ; and these are usually the Ward Committees and 



85 

the Custom House officers. When the assembly has convened, a 
Leader calls to order, and immediately nominates another Leader as 
Moderator and declares him elected. This is done, lest a motion 
should be made to choose a Moderator by ballot, and they abhor 
the "secret ballot." The Moderator then declares that the object 
of the meeting is to nominate a candidate for Representative to 
Congress, and presumes it will be done in the usual way, that is, by 
laying a sheet of paper on the tabl^ , on which the names of the 
candidates, and the number of marks each receives, are to be en- 
tered. The paper is spread out, and then Mr. Simpson rushes for- 
ward, and writes down the names of some half dozen members of 
the party, and puts his mark against the name of the selected and 
favorite candidate. And after that, let any man present dare mark 
against any other name. If he should presume to exhibit so high 
handed a contempt for authority, he is from thenceforth, " a.mark- 
ed man." The nominations conducted in this mode are generally 
unanimous. But if by some inadvertence, or in consequence of 
the unexpected presence of members of the Jackson party not dis- 
posed to submit to despotic power, it is carried to nominate the can- 
didate by ballot, then, after the votes are taken, a Leader moves 
that the Moderator appoint a committee, to retire, and count the 
votes, and tiien report the name of the successful candidate. The 
Moderator declares the motion accepted, and appoints a committee 
of trusty servants, who retire with the votes, and in due time 
report " under a just sense of the important duties imposed upon 
them." The selected candidate is always successful ! 

No one but the Committees knows any thing about the votes, the 
business is done in secret — and the subject is settled by their re- 
port. I have been present at a meeting; where this last proceeding 
was adopted, and for the first time in my life, saw the votes of the 
people taken away from their presence, to be counted in stcret by 
a committee whom they did not appoint, and in whom they had no 
confidence ! 

And this is democracy ! Tiberius would not have dared to treat 
his own servile Senate with such imperial contempt! Never shall 
I forget how my blood boiled with indignation the first time I was 
compelled to submit with many others, (I believe a majority of the 
legal voters present,) to such shameless management and intolera- 
ble arrogance. 



86 

From the facts I have in this chapter staled, it is apparent, that 
no designation of the Jackson party of Massachusetts could be 
more pertinent and des(>riptive than the " Custom House Party" 
Its acknowledged head is the Collector of the Customs ; the officers 
of the elite corps in Boston are Custom House Officers; and all the 
Lieutenants of the- several Counties are the creatures of their for- 
mation. If a member of a town Committee becomes suspected, he 
is expelled by his Chairman ; if the Chairman is refractory, he is 
deposed by the County Committee, and if any of these last disobey 
orders, they are instantly dismissed the service by the Central 
Power in Boston, viz : the Government Officers. All recommen- 
dations for appointments under the Government must be transmit- 
ted to them ; and whether they ever forward them to Washington 
or not, the applicant never knows. If they reject him, his case is 
desperate. The Collector of the Customs is, therefore, Jackson's 
Viceroy in Massachusetts. 



CHAPTER VIII. 



Official Life. 



«< Eternal spirit of the chainless mind ! 
Brightest in dungeons, Liberty !" — Byron. 



On the morning of the 20th April, 1630, in company with Mr. 
Jameson, (a brother-in-law of Gen. McNiel, whom he had appoint- 
ed his " Marker and Prover" of Spirits, Teas, &c.) I attended 
the General to the Custom House in Boston. We found the ex- 
Surveyor and his Deputy quite resigned to their fate, polite and 
disposed to give every information relative to the routine of the 
office. Indeed Mr. Gerry wa.s particularly kind in pointing out to 
me the course of daily busiiiess ; which could not stop, because new 



87 

officers superintended it, but required immediate and constant ac- 
tion. And his Deputy was equally complaisant. They then re- 
tired and left us in undisputed possession. 

I had devoted some three or four days and nightit to reading the 
U. States Laws applicable to my new duties, but might as well have 
slept during the same time, as to any benefit I derived from the 
effort. I will venture to assert, that no man can gather any knowl- 
edge of the practical duties of a United States Officer, by studying 
the Laws regulating those duties.* There is always, a law of ihe 
q^cp very different from the law of the land, the law of precedent, 
which says "^ thus has the business been done, and must continue 
to be done." There is scarcely a transaction of the Custom House 
performed exacthj according to law ; I do not mean to say that the 
spirit of the law is, in all cases, violated, but that some particular 
and perhaps unimportant form is omitted. As, frequently, great 
despatch is required, it is vefy natural that the officers should take 
the shortest cut to arrive at the desired object. And in a little 
time, this " short cut" becomes the travelled road. 

After about a week of close observation and painful anxiety, I 
got into the common path, and drew my load like a practiced dray- 
horse. I soon however discovered that my office was no sinecure, 
and that I was doomed to eat my bread by the sweat of my brow. 
The arduous business of the Surveyor's Department had been hith- 
erto performed by the united labours of the Surveyor, his Deputy, 
and an active and intelligent Clerk, occasionally assisted by an ex- 
tra Clerk. It required their joint labours to accomplish it. But 
Gen. McNiel had no Clerk, and being disabled by an honorable 
wound in the right arm, received at Chippewa, he was no penman. 
Consequently the labour which had, previous to our entrance, been 
divided among three, and sometimes four expert and active wri- 
ters, was to be executed by me alotte, without any material assis- 
tance. Nevertheless, being full of zeal for the cause, of gratitude 
to my patron, and of ambition, to prove to the merchants that they 
had suffered no injury by the change of officers, I continued for 
nearly a year to perform, (I may say,) the whole duties of the 
office. After the exhaustion of the d?.y, night after night found 



• The Comptroller of the Treasury ihould alwayi be an experienced Cus- 
tom House Officer. 



88 

me a watcher over unfinished records. All exercise was suspend- 
ed, recreation avoided, and repose interrupted. In less than ten 
months such severe labours broke me down, and I have never re- 
covered from their fatal consequences. 

At this time, I discovered what hundreds have before me, that 
the confinement and continuation of labour which is incompatible 
with intellectual excitement, is the most destructive to health of 
all other labour. For instance, the poor wretch who picks oakum 
in his cell can think, and therefore he, in some degree, preserves 
his health. The novelist, like Bulvver, can shut himself up for a 
fortnight, and produce a work which shall delight the world, and 
come forth afterwards sound in body and in mind. But he who 
posts Books or copies Records, which requires continual attention, 
without permitting any other intellectual effort, would be a dead 
vian at the expiration of that period. How often during those 
sleepless nights have I repeated the lines which are the motto of 
this chapter ! How often have I directed a glance of memory to 
'my once free, happy, and life-stirring occupation in the country, 
and cursed the folly which made me a slave ! My very dreams, as 
I snatched a hurried repose, were coloured with this longing after 
freedom. I was mounted on the back of a fiery steed, spurning 
with his heels the pathless desert alone, with unmeasured space 
before me, and far beyond the restraints of civilization, and the 
power of man ; or standing on the highest Andes, and looking 
down in triumphant scorn, on the miserable struggles of the world 
beneath ; or a solitary, but free inhabitant of some island in the 
Pacific, walking thoughtful on the shore, and contemplating the 
Ocean, as it washed its murmuring sands; 

" Datk-heaving ; boundless, endless, and sublime, 
The image of eternity." 

When in April I left Dedham, (where I had resided many years 
among a generous, friendly and intelligent people,) I was hale and 
vigorous, able to confine myself to my desk without exercise, for 
five days in succession, and on the morning of the sixth to plunge 
into a trout stream, and trace its course till night, without suffering 
any inconvenience. In less than a year's residence in Boston, as 
a Custom House officer, I was an invalid, incapable of enduring 
manly exercise, and liable on any sudden exertion, or even on the 
receipt of agitating intelligence, to be attacked with violent palpi- 



89 

tations of the heart. And the constant dread of such paroxysms, 
left me few moments of enjoyment. 

For a time, the business throughout the Custom House was 
carriefl on smoothly and harmoniously. TI.e Collector felt and 
enjoyed his new power and dignity; and as Bonaparte declared 
that " He was the Slate," so he looked and acted as if he was tlie 
Custom House. I made occasional visits to the Statesman office, 
and whenever I could snatch a moment of leisure, wrote commu- 
nications for the papers. It was not long, however, before I dis- 
covered that General McNeil's appointment was not agreeable to 
'•the party," and that it had probably eclipsed the brilliant expec- 
tations of some member of their confederacy. And in a conver- 
sation at the Statesman office, I learnt with contempt and indigna- 
tion, that my allegiance was due to them, and not to my patron. I 
instantly remarked, that the General's interests would always claim 
my first care, and that 1 shoulcrmaintain them against every other 
interest. On now looking back to this period of my official life, I 
am convinced that I derived my apjioinlment, eiihf.'r through in- 
structions given to Gen. McNeil at Washington, (as some equiva- 
lent for broken promises.) or through the influence of the '• States- 
man leaders," exerted with the desijin that I should act as a spy 
on the General's movements, and keep him in subjection to their 
authority. They justly supposed, that the General was not the 
sort of man to serve under such officers, when he had been in the 
habit of leading in contests rather more perilous than party war- 
fare. Accordingly, he was never admitted into their political con- 
sultations, but pointedly excluded ; and on every inviting occasion 
was treated with neglect, and subjected to mortification. At tho 
4th July dinner of the Washington Society, (in 1830,) at Concert 
Hall, the General was left to find a seat at the bottom of the table, 
while Henshaw, Simp-^on, Dunlap, Brodhcad, Greene, and even 
some petty Custom House officers, took possession of the " chief 
seats," — at the head. But these 7}ewspaper patriots did not per- 
ceive, that ihe place occupied by a gentleman, who had proved his 
patriotism by real services to his country, and carried abwit with 
him the evidence of it, and of his valour, viz : his wounds, was 
the actual head of the table. 

Ou this occasion, while we waited in the anti-roora the an- 
nouncement of dinner, I noticed a little vian, to whom the general 
12 



90 

attention was directed. His countenance was peculiar. There 
was a strange attraction about it ; if I looked in another direction 
my eyes involuntarily turned to survey it again. It recalled to re- 
collection faces I had seen in dreams, (when suffering with indi- 
gestion,) which in spite of all my exertions kept close to mine, and 
were dreadful to look upon. I thought of Asmodeus, in " the 
devil on two sticks," and of Mephistopheles in Faustus. — " Who 
is that man," I exclaimed to a gentleman on my right hand. 
Why? he answered, dont you know him? That is Isaac Hill, of 
New Hampshire ! 

After the feast, Mr. Hil! favoured the company by reading a 
a written speech, wholly incomprehensible to every guest except 
the initiated, who sat near him. It intimated in dark and mysteri- 
ous terms, the existence of a plot at Washington, originating with 
certain great men ot the South, and having for its object the over- 
throw of the President, and Van Buren, and himself! To me, it 
was as an " an unknown tongue," but I observed that the "States- 
man leaders" smiled and nodded approbation and intelligence. 
A few months afterwards disclosed its meaning. 

At this dinner, I gave the following abominable toast. " Wash- 
ington and Jackson, the first and the last of our Revolutionary 
Presidents, — the founder, and the restorer of the Republic, — the 
Elijah and the Eiisha, of the same political faith." For two 
years past, I have never thought of this awful desecration of 
the memory of Washington, without an inclination to smite my 
breast like the publican, and cry, "■ God be merciful to me, a sinner." 
If the Washington Society will be merciful enough to expunge 
this sentiment from its records, I promise my lasting gratitude, 
and I trust future reward, by a gratuity of five dollars, — in Jackson 
Gold. 

Some months before this time, Collector Henshaw had been con- 
firmed by the Senate, in his honors and dignities ; and Mr, Brod- 
head, (by a majority of " o»e") had been permitted to exchange 
his shears, (one of the emblems of his crat^,) for the quill, as 
Navy Agent, The other emblem, the ^z^oos?, he carried with him, 
in his translation to a more elevated station, and probably will part 
with it only when life is extinct. 

About the time his success was announced, happening in at the 
Statesman office, one of the confederates told me that l:e was at 



91 

Washington while Brodhead's nomination lingered betbre the 
Senate. It seems that Mr. John Roberts had communicated to 
the Senate certain statements in relation to Brodhead, which 
threatened to defeat his hopes; and that Mr. Roberts had been 
assured, the next nominee in that event should be himself. 
" Well," said the confederate, " finding this to be the state of mat- 
ters, and that Brodhead was in trouble, what do you think I did? 
Why, I just stepped into a Justice's of the Peace office, and made 
an affidavit, that John Ituberts''s reputation fur trutli in Boston, 
was bad; which affidavit I handed in to the Senate." Was his 
reputation for truth bad, I enquiied. " Why," he replied, — '' I'ou 
know we don't stand fur the wear and tear of conscience on such 
occasions!'^ Poor John ! he is dead now ! He got an inkling of 
this attack on his reputation and came to me for information; but 
I refused to state any thing unless summoned before a tribunal of 
Justice, when I would declare all I knew. And this arrow was 
secretly thrust into his heart by one of his best friends, in honor 
of whom, at the 8th of January festival, a few months before, he 
had given the following toast. 

By John Roberts, Esq. , Esq. — The talented 

and fearless . Though violent partisans may vilify 

and worthless public officers cheat him, he has the confidence and sup- 
port of all his political friends. 

The " Cabal" had, therefore, in 1S30, succeeded in securing all 
the important offices to themselves. Henshaw's patronage, alone, 
was over 75,000 dollars per annum. And he and his associates 
lorded it over their dependants, with a despotism demanding the 
most lowly and debasing submission, such as no nobleman in Rus- 
sia exercises over his serfs. I have read that in Tartary, when the 
nobles assemble for a "general drunk," they occupy some 
hall, in the second story of the building which is the scene of their 
revels. That from this hall pipes descend on the outside ; and when 
the aristocracy are " full of the god," and part with the superfluous 
fluid through the pipes, the ignoble multitude, (the democracy,) on 
the out side, eagerly catch it, at second hand, and in lime become 
as ''magnificent" a? their masters! .Such was the operation of 
official power in Boston ! 



CHAPTER IX. 

The Tax. 

" In the corrupted currents of this world, 
Offence's gilded hand may shove by justice. 



The Statesman leaders being confirmed in their ofiicial posses- 
sions, next turned their power and avarice against their own hum- 
ble dependants. They had grasped all the lucrative offices in 
Boston in the gift of the Government, but were not satisfied. 
Alexander wept for new worlds to conquer j and while a single 
dollar was to be had the Statesman leaders thirsted to pocket it. 

There was in the project I am about to unfold a meanness and 
extortion wholly unexampled, and almost beyond belief, could it 
not be substantiated by many respectable witnesses before any tri- 
bunal jjossessing tiie power to compel their attendance. I know 
that the Post and Statesman in the most emphatic language have 
repeiitedly declared its falsity. Nevertheless, it is true. I know 
too that the I'ortland Argus and Augusta Age, both recently under 
the superintendence of F. 0. J. Smith, were summoned to the 
assistance of the Statesman leaders when the project leaked out, 
and reiterated the denial of its existence, in the coarse and un- 
mannerly terms for which those papers were distinguished. But 
it is true. F. 0. J. Smith! What an Iceland fog must have 
enveloped the minds of the enlightened people of Cumberland 
County, when such an excrescence of party was plucked out of the 
political cauldron, and made their Representative to Congress ! I 
claim an interest in Cumberland County, for I was graduated at 
Bowdoin under the paternal instructions of President Appleton, a 
pure and holy man, and of Professer Cleveland, the most eminent 
chemist and mineralogist in the country. We revered the Presi- 
dent, but all of us loved the Professor, the fascination of whose 
familiar conversation is irresistible. He is the lever which has up- 
held the Institution from its beginning ; the most splendid ofieis 



9.3 

of emolument in other quarters have not attracted him from the 
comparaTively humble but useful station he so eminently occupies. 
Incontrovertible evidence of a great and good man ! 

To return to the Tax. The first intimation I ever heard of it 
was from Natiianiel Greene, in his private room over the old Post 
Oflice, and but a short time after I became a public officer. Sup- 
posing that it was mere badinage, in which he habiiually indulged, 
I treated it accordingly. Bst in July 1830, I received an invita- 
tion in writing, to " attend a meeting of the Central Committee," 
(to which I did not belong,) "at the Navy Agent's office in State- 
street." 1 remarked, as singular Jit the time, that General McNeil 
did nut receive any invitation. I went there on the appointed 
evening, ignorant of the business which recpiired so formidable a 
sunmions. In a short time some ten or ticehe public officers made 
their appearance. I suppose ail who were invited ; lor the usual 
plan was to assemble those who could be relied upon to puss a 
measure, and then, afterwards to enforce it on the rest, as the fiat 
of the party, from which there was no appeal. Mr. John Crowu- 
inshield, an appraiser, was chosen Chairman, and Mr. J. P. Robin- 
son, (Public Store-keeper, formerly a Clerk in the House of Hcn- 
shaw it Co.) Secretary. Then uprose Mr. Simpson uith an as- 
pect of solemn and melancholy concern. He said, substantially, 
'' That it probably was known to every office-holder present that 
Mr. Nathaniel Greene, the Editor of the Boston Statesman had 
conducted the late political contest, in that paper, with singular 
zeal and ability. That he had contracted in these generous cffi)rls 
large debts, atnounting to over thirty thousand dollars — about 
$33,000;* that the officers of the government in Boston must be 
conscious that they obtained their offices through the distinguished 
exertions of the Statesman and the party which sustained it; that 
Mr. Greene, although he had obtained a valuable office, could not, 
out of the profits which remained after deducting liis necessary 
expenses, pay off much of the principal of the $33,000 delit. if at 
the same time he was obliged to keep <lown tin; interest. That 
political affairs wimc uncertain, and it was an object with Mr. Greene 
to exonerate himself from debt as soon as possible, and he would 
limit his expenses to only 1200 dollars a year ! He (Mr. Simpson,) 

" It was 15,000 only at \Va»liinglon the year bulore. 



94 

therefore thought, upon the whole view of the case, that it was not 
only proper, but incumbent on all the public officers in Boston to 
club together, and annually, by an assessment, pay the interest of 
Mr. Greene's debts, ($1,980) while he was diligently sweeping off 
the principaW' Mr. Simpson had no sooner taken his seat, than 
Mr. Brodhead, who sat on my left at a round table, '^ moved that a 
committee be appointed to retire and doom tiie several officers of 
the District in an annual sum each, for the purpose suggested." 

I never was more completely thunderstruck. The word ''doom," 
(used to me, in a novel sense.) rang in my ears. Owing money 
myself, and receiving but a small salary in comparison with the 
expenses of my station, I was chilled to the bone by such a ruinous 
proposition. 1 thought to remonstrate, but was kindly informed 
that probably the assessment on the Surveyor's Department would 
be only 250 dollars per annum! Another officer, however, who 
felt his gains leaking from him like quicksilver, rose and proposed 
that before the fatal doom was pronounced, a Committee should be 
chosen to investigate the actual amount of the debt, when contract- 
ed, and for what considerations. A request so reasonable could 
not be refused, although evidently a disappointment, and the Com- 
mittee was appointed. 

I left the meeting filled with indignation and disgust at the base- 
ness and extortionate character of the project. Wiiat! 1 exclaim- 
ed is this the beginning of a "i??/jr!u*' Administration. Are we 
put in office only to be devoured by the greater serpents of the 
partyl Here is Greene, but late a poor printer, with an appouit- 
ment worth $6000 per annum wluch he obtained by pleading this 
very debt, now callin«- on me to aid him in discharging it ; when, 
with only a quarter of that sum, I shall have a struggle to pay my 
own debts, unless I also liave the privilege of plundering my sub- 
ordinate ofikers. 

The next morning, I represented to General McNeil the trans- 
actions of the evening, and found him, as I expected, decidedly 
hostile to the project. I declaimed against it throughout the Cus- 
tom House, presenting conclusive reasons, hereafter stated, for re- 
sisting its enforcement. There was considerable excitement on 
the subject. 

I find in mv original minutes of this transaction that the first 
meeting was adjourned to the Statesman Office, and from thence 



95 

was iinniediaiely ndjoiiriicil fur a wi-ck, to Mr. Simpson's dwellinjr 
house. Now tlio cause of lliis selection of a private house was 
Ihis; it excluded from the meeting myself, who iiad never had a 
private invitation to Mr. S's,and therefore could not with propriety 
attend on a general invitation, and it excluded others similarly 
situated, all of us opposed most earnestly to the proposed measure. 
The next place of meetinc: was Mr. C. Hcnsliaw's house. In the 
meantime the work had heen carrying on at these private dwellings 
hy tho^e who were interested i.i its success and those who dared 
not resist the mandates of their masters. All the arrangements 
being at length completed, they came forth into open day again, 
and appointed a meeting at the Navy Agent's office on the ]3lh 
August. General McNiel for the first time, received an invitation 
to attend this meeting. We did not attend; indeed I attended 
none hut the fust meeting, having instantly and decidedly taken 
my ground. Cut on the morning of the 14ih we were informed, 
by a faithful and h.onest man who was present, that the Committee 
appointed at the ^r.s< meeting reported Nathaniel Greene's debts 
ai 30,000 dollars, contracted for political purposes. All the public 
officers were doomed hy the Committee Our informant further 
stated, that he told the meeting " that in January, 1828, Nathaniel 
Greene assembled "the parly'' in Boston, and represented to them 
his embarrassments, coufessin-j that tiio thmtsavd dollars would 
clear him of debt on the Statesman accoimt : and iliat then he" 
(our informant.) " and other zealous .lacksonmen went forth and 
obtained new subscribers to that amount, and supposed they had 
entirely relieved the publishers." Upon this siatcmeni one of the 
•' Leaders" remarked, with nnich vehemence, that ''the vine gen- 
tlemen who were sureties lor the debt of 30.000 knew five years 
ago all about it"' Our informnnt suggesf'd that the debt was a 
private debt, contracted son-.e years before, for very diflerent than 
political transactions. There was so much dissatisfaction express- 
ed by the under officers at the report of the Committee, that the 
Leaders had to give way for a time and appoint a nnr Committee 
to investigate the amount and causes of the debt. 

I should have slated, that previous io this mectit)g, encounteiing 
one of the Leaders in Congress-street, he immediately spoke of 
the proposed assessment, and said that " ii was no new thing— 
McCraie, Collector at Wiscasset, made all his officers pony up in 



96 

supporting the Jackson paper there, and why not do the same m 
Boston?" But he further remarked, that they (the Leaders,) had 
about conchided to give up the assessment and make a subscription 
of it; that Henshaw would give 400 per annum, District Attorney 
200, Simpson 200, Brodhead 200, &c. &c. The joke of this 
scheme was, that these were some of the very creditors to whom 
the debt was due, and if by such liberal subscriptions they could 
excite the uninitiated under officers to an equal liberality, the in- 
terest would be secured ! 

In the meanwhile the new Committee was hard at work, its 
Chairman, an Inspector, determined to search the bottom of the 
mystery. While he was thus engaged, the Leaders frequently ex- 
pressed to those who would report it to him, the opinion that he 
had not been sufficiently rewarded in the distribution of offices and 
ought to be made n Weigher and Guager — i. e. instead of 1095 
dollars per annum he ought to have $4000. After a decent time 
for deliberation, the new Committee reported that it appeared Mr. 
Nathaniel Greene's debts amounted to 20,000 dollars only, but that 
they had not been permitted to see the credit side of the account, 
neither subscriptions, advertisements, nor any thing, but the debtor 
side! The Chairman afterwards stated in the Surveyor's office, 
that he believed the whole affair a mere humbug. That in all 
probability Greene owed debts, for which his friends were respon- 
sible, but they never were contracted by publishing the Statesman, 
or for any other political expenditures. 

An assessment on the. public officers was therefore finally de- 
clared for the payment of 1200 dollars per year, the interest of 
twenty thousand, a debt due from the Postmaster to the Collector 
and his associates. It amounted to about 5 per cent, of their sala- 
ries ; or rather I conclude so, because the annual sum demanded 
of General McNiel was in that ratio. The General was called 
upon by Mr. J. P. Robinson, the Secretary of the first meeting, 
and the agent for the collection, to pay 150 dollars per annum. 
He refused. In a week or two afterwards, Mr. Robinson called 
again, and stated that 125 dollars would be considered sufficient. 
The General declined paying any thing. I was invited, but 
peremptorily expressed my disgust at the whole project. Two or 
three of the under officers refused. They were told by Robinson 
that the Collector approved of the scheme and they would lose 



97 

their off.ces by ilicir pertinacity. Tlie Collector also, as I was In- 
fbriiiecl, spoke with theni on the subject. One of them has sinca 
confessed to me that the Collector's brother culled upon him and 
expressed to him his astonishment at his relusal to pay so just a 
ilemaiid. He could not be convinced of its justice or propriety, 
and on the next day was sued for an old debt of 300 dollars. At 
one of the meetings previous to the imposition of the Ta.x, it was 
openly declared that any ofiicer who should refuse to pay it deserv- 
ed to lose his oflice. I have reason to believe 1 can prove, that 
the Collector told a distinguished ofiicer, " that any man who re- 
fused, ought to be despised as a mean fellow," or words to that 
effect. 

Most of the public officers however paid their assessments for 
nhoui five vionths, and about 600 dollnrs had been collected in 
Hank, when suddenly the whole was refunded; it was reported, in 
consequence of intimations from AVashington. It was at the same 
time suggested that individuals could give their money as subscrip- 
tions to iMr. Chaiies G. Greene's llcpublican iMagazine ! which in 
many instances was done. 

Separate from the corrupt character of the transactions I have 
been staling, so remarkable under a Ilefonn Administration, its 
enormity is more fully disclosed when it is known, that every under 
ofiicer, monthly, before receiving his pay, takes and subscribes the 
following Oath. 

" I, A. B , do hereby certify on oath, thai [ have performed the 

sprvices stated in tlie aljove account; that I have receivoti the full sum 
tlierciii cliargL'd, to my ou-n use and benifit, und that I hare not paid, 
deposited or assiu^ned, nor contracted to pay, deposit or ussis^n any part 
of such compensation to the use of any other person, nor in any u'ay, 
directhf or indirectly, paid or f^iven, nor contracted to pay or ijcive,any 
reward nr compensation for my office or employment, or the emoluments 
thereof— So help me God.''''* 

~" ~ ■ - - — I ■ - — -^ I I ■ ■■ . . ■ ■ ■ ■ - I 11^ 

* 1 know, tliat tlie transaction above detailed, was coiniiiunicalcd to the 
Presideiil's cou.iKellors al Wa&liiii^rton in lsL51,bulin 1833, all the Govern- 
mctd Officers in Boston iccrc rc-iiominatcd to the Senate' 



13 



CHAPTER X. 



A Conspiracy, 



" Let go thy hold, when a great wheel runs down a hill, lest it break thy 
neck wUh following it; but the great one that goes up the hill, let him draw 

thee after." 

" That, Sir, which serves and seeks for gain, 

And follows but for form. 

Will pack, when it begins to rain. 

And leave thee in the storm." — Shakspeare. 



There never was an extreme opinion broached, but forihwith a 
counter opinion, equally extreme, started forth to combat it. Nul- 
lification originated the " Proclamation" and a high Tory party: 
and these, in their re-action, are now making daily proselytes to 
South Carolina doctrines all over New-England. Pligh Tariff 
notions begat a Free Trade party. ]Mr. Clay's vast schemes of in- 
ternal improvement, called up the public opinion which overthrew 
the whole system. The arrogance of the U. S. Bank and its par- 
tisans is in a fair way to destroy all paper currency. 

To come nearer home. Dr. Beecher's attack some three years 
ago, on the Catholics, founded the now formidable infidel parij in 
Boston. Before that, they were a mere handful, almost unknown. 
Thousands of good Protestants went to hear what the Catholics 
had to say for themselves, and found Dr. O'Flaherty more than a 
match for Dr. Beecher. And as they could not believe in the ab- 
surdities of Catholicism, they became sceptics. And this unhappy 
tendency of public opinion was pushed onward at the time by in- 
fatuated " ^racf distributors of the Protestant party. My own 
house was repeatedly invaded by fiery-eyed old maids, who insisted 
on thrusting a tract into my hand, and examining into the state of 
mv soul ! Had they been young and handsome I should iiave 
submitted to the examination with great satisfitction. But alas ! 
few ladies withdraw their thoughts from the world until they dis- 
cover that the world has " cut their acquaintance." 

Further: every meeting of the abolitionists in New-England and 



99 

ffic Middle Stales adds a link to llie heavy fetters of the slave at 
the South. Even the immense benefits of the Temperance Re- 
form, are in danger of bt-iiig lost by the fanaticism of some of its 
advocates. I read in a Banuor newspaper^ of late, a statement, that 
in one day liicre were OUOU dollars worth of hops for sale in that 
market, and the editor expressed his regret that they would proba- 
bly be converted into liecr! What! conspire against honest, 
sober, healthy ''John Barley-corn f" Tlie fellow ought to be put 
ill the pillory ! Another editor consoled himself in t!ic failure of 
the apple crop because there would be no cider! Now wliea we 
voluntarily abandon the use of spirits and wine, if we are debarred 
the use of honest beer, and generous ajiple-juicc, what in the name 
of thirst shall we drink ? Men will sulier themselves to be per- 
suaded ; but when you attempt to ihlve them into an opinion at 
the point of the bayonet they will unite and meet you with the 
same weapon; they will " turn and rend you."* 

The appositeness of these remarks will be seen in the sequel. 
The old federalists were the advocates of a strong Government 
Tiiey believed that the Confederacy was more in danger from 
'■'■Jaclion in the viembers than tyranny in the head." That the 
Union was "a rope of sand" ready to fall in pieces on the slightest 
shock, while the President possessed but trifling power, and never 
could by its e.xercise jeopardize the Constitution. When therefore 
South Carolina announced her doctrine of Nullification, the New- 
England I'ederalisis opposed it nearly to a man, and defended the 
princi])les of the Presideni's Proclamation. The problem has 
since been solved ; and at this moment, men who two years sigo 
were most determined enemies of Nullification, begin to confess 
that it may be the only security against the establishment of a Des- 
potism ! Sic transit.! 

" Time strips our illusions of their hue, 
And one by une in turn, sonie grand mistake 
Casts off its Lri^'hl skin yearly, like tiie snake." 

Gen. Jackson, in his inaugural Speech or Message, had e.xpress- 

* See Appendix, (u.) 

i The alTuctions of the people of Massachuselt.'" have recently recoiled in a 
remarkable degree on their Stale Oovernnienl. T his wos one cause of tho 
30,000 \Vhijj j{ain al the late elections. 



100 

I 

ed the opinion, that a President of the U. States ought to be elect- 
ed for one term only. Men took him at his word, and expected 
that he would decline a re-election. So early as July '£9, when I 
was at Washington, the question most anxiously agitated was " Cal- 
houn or Van Buren ?" It was put to me repeatedly, and my 
answer was— let us wait until the President ncuv.uly declines, hefove 
we select his successor. But a great majority of ihe office-holders 
there, and of the applicants for office, and I thi:ik, of the people 
of the U- States, at that time, were friendly to Tvlr. Calhoun, and 
gave him the preference. Van soon perceived the setting of the 
current, and determined to have "a scrape" with his rival, which 
should throw him out of the course, or, if that pUm failed, to in- 
veigle Jackson into consenting to a second term, " for the good of 
the people." He succeeded, as he always has, thus far, in his 
machinations. 

Towards the close of the year 1850, we noticed in Boston many 
omens of an approaching explosion in the Jacks;)n party. Pro- 
ceeding to the Custom House one morning I overtook the Collec- 
tor in Liberty-square. Any news? I enquired. Ans. "Only 
that Major Eaton must go out, he can't remain where he is." Now 
this was appalling news to me, because General McNiel considered 
Major Eaton as his warm friend, and I feared the General's inter- 
ests would suffer by such an event.* Who is to have his place ? 
I asked. He turned partly round and looked at me with a coun- 
tenance glorious as a sunflower, and with an " ecce liomo^' expres- 
sion it was impossible to misunderstand. But he said nothing. 
The d — 1 thought I, this is doing business w^ith a vengeance. Here 
is Major Eaton, the President's old "crony," and "pet" of the 
Cabinet, doomed already to the axe ! 

We soon discovered that the Statesman Leaders were all Cal- 
houn men. They supposed Jackson intended to retire, and having 
obtained all they expected from him, were as indifl'erent about 
casting off their old benefactor and patron as was ever A inos Ken- 
dall. Their object was now to secure the possession of their spoils, 

* It was generally believed, that Henshaw designed to relinquisli the Col- 
lectorship after a year or tvvo. And McNiel, iiaving accepted the appoint- 
ment of Surveyor on the Secretary's promise of future promotion, trusted to 
succeed him. Eaton's dismission might prevent the accomplishment of his 
hopes. 



101 

and they looked to Mr, Calhoun as the arbiter of their future fate 
and the source of good things to come. Most of the under olficers 
went with them, because tlicy were dependent on them for their 
subsistence. But a few bold and generous spirits woulil not consent 
to abandon tlieir old President and revered pohlical father so un- 
ceremoniously, but determined to remain loyal in their duty, until 
Jie publicly announced his intention to decline a re-election. At 
the head of this small party in the Custom House was General 
IVrcNiel, and L. M. Parker the Naval OHicer, and John W. James 
a Weigher, (the ablest man who ever belonged to the Statesman 
part}-,) were his zealous coadjutors. As to myself, with less ability, 
I burned to prove my sincere attachment to the " Old Hero," and 
to show him that I was not the man to " pack and leave him in the 
storm." 

The United States Telegraph, the organ of the Jackson parly, 
began to hint " a design in the President to imdermine our free 
institutions and to corrupt public and private morals;" and to our 
confusion and dismay, the Boston Statesman instead of rushing to 
his defence, admitted the fact by its silence. At last, about tiie 
loth Dec. 1830, 1 happened to see a "Prospectus" of the Wash- 
ington Globe, and instantly wrote the Editor the following letter. 
I believe I was the first subscriber to the Globe in Boston. 

Boston, December 15, 1830. 
Francis P. Blair, Esq. 
Dear Sir — Havin^f this morning read the prospectus of the " Globe" 
and rccojrnizing in tlio political sentiments therein set forth the creed 
to which I have long hacn attached, I desire to hocotne a suhscnher. 
JMany of the old and faithful friends of General Jackson in this quar- 
ter, have had fearful apprehensions, that a plot has been in ni^italion 
to induce him to ttun a deaf car to the ardent wishes of the [)coj>lo 
and decline a re-election. Or, if </«'« could not be rfl'ected, to drive 
from his councils some of his most trusty and worthiest friends. A 
faithful spiitinel at head quarters, who shall watch the niovi'uients of 
faction, and proclaim to the (Irriiocralic party of the llepuhlic wlii-n- 
ever dangers threaten its ascendency, is a most gratifying event. We 
trust wc shall find such an one in the Editor of the Globe. 

When it was discovered in the Custom House that I had sub- 
scribed to the new paper at Washington, the Deputy Collector, 
who never originates any thing himself, but is a very faithful re- 
porter of other men's opinions, sneeringly remarked, that "no 
shrewd politician would ever sustain the Globe." I afterwards 
procured for Mr. Blair several subscribers. 



102 

To counteract the plans of the Statesman party, we determined 
to get up a celebration on the 8th January, 1831. Some disin- 
chnation was manifested by the " Leaders," but the time for open 
defection had not arrived. They were therefore forced to unite 
with us in the project. Here is my account of the celebration in 
another letter to Blair, together with a remark on the astounding 
declaration which had appeared "officially'' in his paper, that 
" Gen. Jackson consented to be a candidate for re-election !" 

Boston, February 3d, 1831. 
Francis P. Blair, Esq. 

Dear Sir, — I have received your letter, (franked by Col. Johnson,) 
and on the same day, nine numbers of the Globe. The ground you 
have taken in the article, which closes with an official notice that Gen. 
Jackson will consent to a re-election, has rejoiced all his real friends, 
and thrown some of his pretended friends in this quarter, into a most 
ludicrous dismay and trepiilatiofl. The conspiracy, being by this un- 
exi)ected declaration utterly overthrown, the friends of the President 
and republican principles have nothing to fear; and the utmost confi- 
dence of a glorious victory has succeeded to doubts and despondency. 

By the Boston Courier, of this date, (which I herewith send you by 
mail,) you will perceive the traces of this conspiracy, and that even 
now its authors and abettors are not without hojie of bringing it again 
into action. But detection, (achieved by > our paper,) has left them 
powerles?, and their courage is the oftspring of despair. 

I likewise send you by mail, the published account of the Jackson 
celebration here on the Sth January. It appeared in the "■Statesman.^' 
This celebration was "got up" by General McNeil and myself, and 
all the toasts, (to which no name is prefixed,) were prepared by Mr. 
Little, Deputy Naval Officer, and myself. For the Editor of the 
Statesman, I also prepared the account of the proceedings, for publi- 
cation. He sent me the proof for correction, and in \.\\<d proof , all the 
toasts were inserted ; but in the publication, those that were compli- 
mentary to Mr. Van Buren, were omitted. I mention these facts, to 
show you "how the wind sits" in this quarter. 

The toasts suppressed, were as follows: — 

By B. H. Norton. — Hon. Martin Van Buren ; the probable suc- 
cessor of Jackson; may the wisdom and firmness of the latter descend 
to the former. 

By John B. Derby. — The "7nighty magician''^ at Washington; who 
by virtue of his art, transmutes folios of diplomacy into sugar and 
molasses.^ 

Several other alterations were made in the proof, which I will not 
at present specify. 

Although the Statesman leaders were somewhat confounded by 



* Alludins to the West India trade. 



103 

the annunciation of General Jackson as a candidate for re-election, 
yet it did not arrest their cflorts in behalf of Mr. Calhoun. The 
expected e.vplosion had not yet happened, and Gen. Dull" Green 
had advised them by letter tliat "Jackson was nothing, and Cal- 
lioun everything, and if they could not come out in his favor, by 
all means to maintain a strict neutrality until they were assured of 
the course of public opinion, which would inevitably set for Cal- 
lioun."-- I cannot forget that at this time, they seemed to consider 
the President as an "old granny," who had been tickled with the 
notion of reigning another term, while no "shrewd politician" be- 
lieved such an event possible. 

But they always look before they leap, and in anticipation of the 
coming "explosion," although they hated McNiel for his nn- 
shaken fidelity to Jackson, they thought it good policy to secure 
his influence on their faction in the event of a disastrous issue. 
And therefore, one day, the General received the following note, 
which by accident I find in my possession. It is so characteristic 
of Simpson, that it deserves to be preserved. Be it observed, that 
this was the first notice that General IMcNiel ever had of his being 
a member of the " Central Committee I" 

Monday, 14th February, '31. 
General John McNIcl, > 
Purchase-street. ^ 
Dear Sir, — You arc reminded that the Central Committee of w hich 
you are a nicMilior, will meet nt the Slnlcsman Office, ^Vater-strect, 
this eveiiinfr at 7 o'clock, by adjourunicnt. 

Yours truly, JOHN K. SI.MPSON. 

Meetings every Monday Evening nt 7. Please attend them all. 

Now it was impossible for IMr. Simpson to inform the General 
directli/ that he had been appointed a member of the Central Com- 
mittee ; he must take a round-about way, and use some stratagem 
to effect his purpose ! The General declined the appoinlment ; 
and his answer is so excellent, embodving the expressed sentiments 
of the President, that, (as I was permitted to take a copy,) I trust 
he will pardon me for publishing it. It was a bitter pill for the 
Statesman leaders to swallow, indeed they never fairly got it down ! 

Boston, February IGtIi, 1831. 
Dear Sir, — Your note of the 14th ult. informing me of the meeting 

• I know a gentleman wiio read this letter. 



104 

of the Central Committee at the Statesman OfRce, has been received. 
Presumin;:;; you are the Chairman of that Committee, — this is the first 
official notice I have had of my appointment. 

I wish you and the other gentlemen of the Committee, as well as 
the members of the Legislature, by whom, (I suppose,*) my appoint- 
ment was made, to be assured of my earnest desire to co-operate with 
them in the protnotion of the great objects of our party, viz: — the re- 
election of President Jackson, and the complete success of the politi- 
cal principles advocated in his Messages. But, (permit me to say,) in 
our republican government, every thing of a political character ought 
to be left to the free and unbiassed judgment of the people; and those 
who take the lead in political affairs, should never be liable to even a 
suspicion of acting under any influence distinct from the general im- 
pulse which actuates the whole mass of the people. Holding, as I do, 
a public office under government, and believing that it is bad policy 
i^oY public officers to be known as leaders in the political affairs of the 
State, to the exclusion of the citizens, (the more proper representa- 
tives of the people,) you must suffer me to decline serving on the 
Massachusetts Central Committee. Another reason for this deter- 
mination, is my recent removal to this State, and the imperfect knowl- 
edge I have of its inhabitants, and of the policy intended to be pursued 
by the political party to which I belong. 

You will, however, understand me to be at all times ready to devote 
my time, money and exertions, to the re-election of the President, and 
to the maintenance of the principles of his Administration. In this 
good work, you can ask nothing of me, wherein I am not prepared to 
make every sacrifice. Respectfully, 

Your obedient servant, 

J.. McNIEL. 

About the last of February 1831, the "explosion" took place, 
the match being applied by that political Guy Faux, Van Buren. 
The famous "^ Calhoun Correspondence'' arrived at Boston ! The 
Statesman Leaders were in ecstacies ; they said but little, but there 
was a triumphant glee in their looks and movements manifest to 
every observer. The few friends of the President assembled and 
resolved to defend his cause at all hazards. And there was some 
cliivalry and disinleresledness in this resolution, for at the time, the 
general opinion in Boston was, that Jackson would be annihilated 
in the controversy. On the afternoon of the 23d February, I 
called at the Statesman Office, and enquired of Mr. Charles G. 
Greene, then the ostensible editor uf the Statesman, whether he 
would on Saturday, publish a calm and temperate Review of the 
" Correspondence." He directly and positively refused, and de- 
clared " he would publish nothing in relation to the subject until he 
saw how matters were coming out." "Why, said I, General Jack- 



* He was mistaken ! 



103 

son is the boncfactor of your wliolc party ; a common fcelincr of 
pratitiuie oucht to induce vou to come fortli instantly in Ins defence. 
How sliameful to abatidon liiin in his first liour of need ! But my 
persuasions had no effect ; he was resohitc and determined on the 
*■ non-committal" poHcy. I wrote a Review of the Correspon- 
dence that night, and on the iJoth, presented it to the Editors of 
tlie Boston Gazette with an earnest request for its pubhcation. In 
a few days after they returned it wit!i a letter containing their re- 
fusal and stating that " if the communication appenred at nil, at 
present, it should be in some violetit opposition paper." I then 
offered it to ^Ir. Buckingham, the distinguished editor of the 
Courier, an opposition paper ; who read it, hesitated a moment and 
then declined publishing it. Finding all the newspapers of Boston 
closed against the defence of the President, I then sent my Re- 
view to the Editor of the Globe at "Washington, whore it was pul>- 
hslied over the signature of "A Boston Jacksonian"' sometime in 
Marcli '31. I would insert it here, did I not vow believe that my 
zeal was the eflect of a delusion, and that I did injustice, in many 
instances, to the President's great antagonist. 

That the Jackson party might not become extinct in Boston, a 
few of us at this time formed ourselves into a Hickory Club, to 
sustain by united action the cause of the President. The original 
members were, (I copy from the original signatures,) John JMcXiel, 
Samuel Dexter, John W. James, John B. Derby, James Gooch, 
William Little, Benjamin II. Norton. And we determined, if 
the course pursued by the Statesman party was persisted in, we 
would start a new Jackson paper in the City.* For nearly a year 
after the Correspondence they clung to Calhoun, believing the re- 
election of Jackson impossible. They have repeatedly charged 
me, (and otiiers,) with writing ^' injlammntorij letters" to my friends 
in Washington ; but at the sau^.e time, /a/sc/// (I have no doubt,) 
declared, that then "'^'"'^ "'' ""^"^ ^"'^^'■' ^^ Boston for their inspec- 
iionl Urodhead publicly stated this calumny, and Ilenshaw af- 
terwards in a public meeting, repeated it. I do not believe they 
ever saw one of my private letters, and as I have a disposition to 
gratify every'man if I can do it wiiliout great injury to myself, I 
here insert one of my letters as a sacrifice to their curiosity. 



The Boston Globe was got up afterwards under our auspicci. 
14 



To 



106 

Boston, May 6, 1831. 



Washin<Tton City. ^ 

Dear Sir, — I seize the occasion of Judge Hayward's immediate re- 
tnrn to Washington, to write you ; being assured that my letter will 
pass safely to your hands. We have been highly gratified with the 
spirited and generous sentiments of the Judge. His visit may be 
considered an avatar of original and untainted Jacksonism into this 
benighted region of political jealousy, selfishness and intrigue. May 
it tend to our edification. General McNiel and others have given him 
some information in regard to the strange and unfortmiate manage- 
ment of our political concerns in this quarter; but the half is not told 
bim. 

• Duff Green, that "great and good man."'' (as the Statesman of the 
12th February said,) arrived here on AVednesday evening and took 
lodgings at the Postmaster's, N. Greene. On Thursday he was 
feasted by his host, and the "elect" were invited to do him homage. 
General McNiel and Leonard M. Parker were included in the invita- 
tion. The General declined ; Mr. Parker accepted, after stating to 
N. Greene that he actively disapproved of Duff's political course. I 
learn from him, that politics were not discussed at table. But the 
same evening there was a party made for Duff at the Collector's. As 
General McNiel and Mr. Parker were not invited to this meeting, we 
arc ignorant of its proceedings. On Friday morning, however, the 
trumj)eters of this "holy alliance" sounded the strain, that Mr. Cal- 
houn ivas to be run again as Vice President. This is not a neio ar- 
rangement. Early in March, I asked Mr. Henshaw if he supposed 
that the Legislature of Virginia would nominate Mr. Calhoun for the 
Presidency. He answered^ that he would not be nominated as Presi- 
dent, but as Vice President ; woidd be supported by the democratic 
party, and be elected. I instantly replied, that I was one of that party 
who would oppose such an arrangement with all my strength ; be- 
cause nothing could tend so effectually to embarrass General Jackson'.^ 
administration as the election of Mr. C. to preside in the Senate; and 
further, that the establishment of a new and aristocratic precedent, 
prolonging the term of service, contrary to the example of Washing- 
ton, Jefferson, &.c. would never be sanctioned by any true republican. 
He made no reply. I am confident however that this is now General 
Dufi's plan, and'expect to see such a nomination in the Statesman in 
the course of a few months. Whenever it appears, the " loyal" 
amoncst us will have a new paper, or there is no virtue in monej'. 

Duff I hear, has been courting the federalists of Boston ; a court- 
ship which I suppose must resemble that of Richard HI and Lady 
Anne's. You have probably observed that the Boston Gazette has 
abandoned itself to Calhoun. Duff and its editor have been seen 
cooing together in apparently delightful intercourse. In the mean- 
time, the Statesman, to save appearances, abuses the Gazette in good 
set terms, little suspecting that keen observers perceive the bond of 
flesh which unites these Siamese twins together. But time proves all 
things, and "we shall see, what we shall see," as the showmen say. 
Duff went yesterday, with the Collector, to Worcester. 

From certain signs, I am apprehensive that J. Q. Adams is prepar- 
ing in the next Congress to support the Administration. God forbid ' 
If he does, we lose one great man at least, viz: — Mr. Randolph. He 



107 

deserleU Jefferson's admiiiislratioii (as lio «niLl) when nariuil)a« Diii- 
well and J. Q. Adams joiiit-d it, and, 1 suppose, he would Icel hini.self 
corn[)olled, under similar oiri-uinstances, to desert General Jackson's. 
If J. Q. Adams, the Prince of Tnrticoats, docs is'ivc in his adiiesioii, 
I trust he will omit none of the ceremonies that distin>,'uished his for- 
mer regeneration ; that ho will kneel before his illustrious successor, 
and confes^inu: his sins, reveal another treasonable plot. That he will 
tell Lini all about the corrupt bargain in lb'i-4, &.c. 

The President's Cabinet at length blew up, with tremendous re- 
ports. Van Buren did not display his usual sagacity in ibia 
mancEUvre. He was too precipitate. Had he confnicd bis operations 
to undermining the Vice President alone, he would not only have 
Buccceded in elfectiug that object, but he might also have persuaded 
the President to retire, and leave tlie field for him to expatiate in. 
But he hurried on his operations with such indiscreet ardor, that 
the Legislatures of several States strongly attached to Jackson 
rushed to the rescue, and re-nominated him as their candidate for 
the Presidency. The "old gentleman" was gratified, and thank- 
fully consented to "stand." And thus Van saw his hopes kicked 
four years into futurity. 

Major Eaton was out but I\Ir. Collector Henshaw was not in I 
Nobody seemed to think at all about his extraordinary claims and 
qualification?. Such neglect and such sad disappointments af- 
fected his remarkable equanimity, and every day found him more 
melancholy and ferocious. On the 2d August, he summoned into 
his presence, a Weiglier of the Custom House, who had been one 
of the most determined and active of the little band which ad- 
hered unwaveringly to Jackson through the storm of the late 
controversy. He a|)peared, and was informed that ^'the Govern- 
ment had no further occasion for his serr/cfs .'" He enquired, 
with some astonishment, '• for what cause?" The Collector repli- 
ed, " that is of no conse(iueiice; it is sujj'icient that yuu do not 
suit mij purposes. You arc discharged, and will hand over your 
oflicial i)apcrs to the Surveyor!" Accordingly the Surveyor re- 
ceived a notice, stating that Mr. was discharged from office, 

and would surrender his papers to him furlhwilh ! Mr. 

was a good officer, and the ablest scholar and best writer of any 
man of the party. How admirably Bonaparlean ! There is noth- 
ing like admiring a character until we catch its peculiarities! I 
remember an old gentleman who once told me that he read law iu 



108 

the late Chief Justice Parsons' office, and that through life, he 
had made the Judge his model. And, he added, perhaps you may 
have perceived it? Yes, I answered, the Judge was remarkable 
for wearing a red bandanna handkerchief about his neck, and 
I notice that you do the same ! 

Mr. presented his case to the President, but is yet a pri- 
vate citizen ! 

We now come to the famous meeting at the Old Court House, 
in Boston, on the 15th August. On this subject I must be some- 
what minute, and humbly beg my readers to pardon me for intro- 
ducing matters which may be comparatively uninteresting, but 
which are important, as showing the mercenary character and 
corrupt motives of a particular section of the Jackson party. Be 
it borne in mind, that at this moment there were, again, two di- 
visions of the old Jackson party; one advocating the re-election 
of the President, the other, strongly believing that he yet would 
decline a re-election, and therefore, preparing to offend no candi- 
date who might offer, but to go for the strongest I In this state of 
things, it had been proposed by the country members of the Jack- 
son party in Masssachusetts, to assemble in Convention at Wor- 
cester. These gentlemen had watched with suspicious eyes the 
late movements of the " Statesman Leaders," and perceived but 
too clearly, that they were offering the whole party in market for 
sale, to the highest bidder. JFe in Boston Icneiv the fact. Our 
numbers had greatly increased, and we determined to give the in- 
grates and traitors an " I'll try," in electing a ticket of delegates 
to the Worcester Convention. I therefore wrote and published 
the following article in the Boston Workingman's Advocate. 

FOR THE workingman's ADVOCATE. 

On Monday evening next, (15th August,) at 7 o'clock, P. M. a 
caucus of the friends of the Administration in this City, will be held 
at the Old Court, for the purpose of choosing delegates to tlie 
Jackson State Convention at Worcester. The project of assembling 
a Convention at Worcester was formed by the Jackson members of 
the Legislature during the last session. They resolved that it was 
^' expedient to organize the Republican party in this Copimonwealth." 
It is important that delegates of just political views, tried discretion, 
and of known devotedness to the cause and its illustrious head, 
Andrew Jackson, he sent from this City to the Worcester Convention. 
The members of the Legislature who called this Convention, it ap- 
pears by the above resolution, considered the Republican party of this 
Commonwealth either not organized at all, or that the present organ- 



109 

ization was bnd and Inefficient. Certain it is, that the Jackson party 
has not increased in Massachusetts to tlie dejrree which tlie soundness 
of its principles, the popularity ot' the President, and the successtul 
administration of the atl'uirs of' tlie Repuhlic, authorised us to hope. 
'Last year the party sutlered a serious decline of coniparativi! streni^th; 
the nett gain of the opposilion being ahont 30(U. in this City, iVoni 
1200 it has sunk to about tJOO voters. Now there are causes that have 
conduced to this rapid and lamentable decline, which are known 
amongst us ami whicii we conlidcnlly trust a new and thorough or- 
ganization of the party will remove. WhatcTcr of organization was 
made two years since was, we have reason to believe, based upon a 
platform that no longer exists. Sui)pose it to have been an Inghatn 
and Dull Green basis.^ If this is the fact, such an organization is 
clearly, at this time defective. As one of these gentlemen has been dis- 
missed from the Administration, and the other begins "to jiale his in- 
etiectual fires," and approaching a political death, remembers the 
green prarics of ISIissouri, one would think tl.at the drop sustaining 
such an organization, ought lo fall and leave it ''hanged by the neck." 

Indeed we all feel that the reign of illiberality, selfishness and 
"vaulting ambition" has ceased, and that the President has collected 
nround him a Cabinet of patriots of like spirit with himself, liberal 
ingenuous and magnaiiiiiious statesmen. Let tlien t!ie party be organ- 
ized on this new and honorable basis. Let the test be, "arc you in 
favour of the re-election of Jackson and opposed to re-election of his 
enemies." 

It is earnestly hoped that every Pooler in this City who answers 
affirmatively tu this (juestion, will attend the Meeting ut the Old Court 
House on Monday ne.\t. Let there be a ticket of delegates selected, 
that shall do honor lo the patriotism, liberality and talent of the Jack- 
eon [tarty of this City ; that shall favour measures calculated to \no- 
iiiote th'i re|)(jse of the country and relieve it from the harrassing con- 
flicts of sellish ambition, and that sliall consult the advancement of 
the republican party by removing all obstructions to the sound, judicious 
and prosperous Administration of the President. 

Let every true Jackson ujau attend this Meeting. 

j2 fVorking Man. 

N. B. — You will find by the Boston Statesman of July 30, that this 
Meeting is appointed on iV cdnesduy xXm 15ih August. If you wait 
till VVednesday, you will be two days too late ! J\lo7iday is the Iblh.* 
"Perpetual vigilance is required," Sec. You know the rest. 

'' The enemy" were extremely fearful of the result of the meet- 
ing, and consequently put in operation all the machinery of their 
tactics. And here we have another sample of the " beauties of 
democracy." Tlioy did not dare trust their own retainers in a 
public and iwctiirnaL meeting of the party ! Therefore, ijiey 
adopted the usual process, with their Committee. Here is a 
specimen. 

• Uao of the common tricks of •♦ the party." 



110 

Josiah Dunham, Jr. Esq. } 
South Boston. ^ 
Sir — You are hereby notified that a nieetincr of the Jackson Repub- 
lican County Committee will be held at the Jackson Reading Rooai, 
on Monday Evening, Ist August next, at 8 o'clock. 

Per order, CHARLES WATERMAN, Secretary. 

Boston, July 26, 1831. 

At the last meeting of the Committee it was Voted, 

" That the Committee prepare themselves with the names of suit- 
able pel sons to be put on the nomination list of Delegates to the State 
Convention, (at Worcester,) at their next meeting." 

Accordingly, on the evening of the meeting at the Old Court 
House, the Statesman party came there with printed votes for del- 
egates! Mr. Charles G. Greene entered the bar, with a package 
of printed votes weighing, 1 should think, two pounds. Tha 
leading men secured the upper end of the hall ; in the rear and in 
the darkness were posted the apprentices of Greene, (printer,) 
and Brodhead, (tailor,) and some Clerks of Nathaniel Greene the 
Postmaster, few of whom were voters. They were placed in this 
position to " hiss'^ every gentleman who should prove refractory to 
the mandates and views of the " Statesman leaders." 

The " real" Jacksonmen had prepared their votes for Moderator 
of the meeting. What was their astonishment to see a brother of 
the Collector suddenly rise, and exclaim "gentlemen, the meeting 
is opened; JVathaniel Greene is nominated for Moderator: if 
such is your minds please to signifij it : Mr. Greene is chosen!" 
Mr. Greene bustled into the Chair, and the meeting was opened ! 

Having been cheated in the beginning, we determined to be 
more rapid in our next movements, and while " the party" were 
chuckling over their trick, John W. James, Esq. rose and offered 
his Jackson Resolutions to the assembly of conspirators. They 
were '^ the very thing," Viud cnme upon them wholly unexpected, 
and we smiled with subdued glee to witness the gradual consternation 
and " paling" of their countenances. As James, in a voice elevated 
by a consciousness of honor and honesty, advocated his stirring 
appeal to the loyalty and patriotism of Jacksonmen, the Collector, 
Simpson, Brodhead and the rest, quailed beneath the force and 
energy of his language, and knowing nothing else to do to arrest 
the penetrating influence of truth, they winked at the corps 
of apprentices in the rear, who immediately responded by a 
general hiss ! He ceased ; tiiere was a moment's pause, when the 



Ill 

Collector started from the Sheriff's box. I never beheld a more 
ferocious and fiery aspect ! Had I Tacitus before me, I would 
quote his description of Domitian. I remembered, that once visiting 
a sliow of animals, there was a " ^reat ant eater," who, beyond ail 
comparison, was the fiercest of the menagerie. There was tho 
tiger, the black bear, the leopard,— all very pleasant fellows; but 
touch the tail of the '^;;reat ant eaier^^ and he seemed actually to 
spit fire. The Collector reminded me of this irascible picker up 
of little things. It was with extreme difficulty, so great was his 
wrath, that he could speak at all. And when he spoke, it was not 
in measured accents, but in convulsive puffs, like Vesuvius or 
Strombolo. The following letter to .Major Lewis at Washington, 
gives a more graphic and immediate description of this meeting. 

Boston, IGth Aurriist, 1331. 

Dear Sir, — "We held our meeting last ni<:jht. After tho Moderator 
and Secretary were chosen without op])osition, John W. Jamc.<, Esq. 
rose and proposed the resolutions, wliich I here enclose. They were 
opposed by the Collector and others, on the ground that tho meeting 
was not called for the purpose of passing resolutions, and that the 
resolutions themselves were a fiie-brand thrown into tho rPiiuhiican 
camp. He was exceedingly passionate and abusive, calling the friends 
of the resolutions "marked men," — "ready to join any party,"' "the 
Bulletin party revived," &c. &c. Mr. James, &c. replied and referred 
to the reeolutions themselves as the evidence of his political faith. 
The Collector introduced a couple of resolutions intended to .supercede 
Mr. James', which evaded the main points on which at this time the 
truth ought to he shown. After postponing Mr. J's resohitions till 
the close of the evening, they were finally passed. Wc consider this 
R great triumph, we having in fact forrod the Duff Groen party into 
the expression of sound Jackson doctrine. Another resolution was 
offered by Mr. Gooch, condemning the conduct of Gen. Green ; this, 
after another abusive speech by the Collector, was voted doini. — hini- 
Fclf, Brodhead, and all their dependents voting against the resolution. 
Here was evidence, that tiioy were indeed, as has been rrpresrntcd, a 
Duff Green party. I send you a cojiy of this resolution. I think 
you will be much pleased with Mr. James' resolutions. They are 
truly excellent, and I trust Mr. Blair will publish tlieni in his paper. 

The meeting last night was not numerous. A great majority of 
those present being the under officers of the Customs, the Clerks of 
the Post Office, Navy Agent, and the relatives and dependents of all 
these gentlemen. The ticket prepared l>y them for delegates (40) to 
the Worcester Convention received 03 votes ; a ticket constructed 
on a tnore liberal plan, 35.* But although this meeting was small, 
there has a spirit gone forth which will be felt, and will bring forth 

• Counted by C. Henshaw, Brodhead and Simpson, (I believe they com- 
posed the Committee nominated by Nalhaniel Greene,) not in open mceUng, 
but in a prizaU room.' 



112 

^00(1 fruits hereafter. The indiscriminate condemnation, by the Col- 
lector in his speech, of all Workingmen, Federalists and Bulletin men, 
under which denominations he included all men who did not submit 
to his dictation, will tend more closely to unite the friends of the 
President in this City and give to their union strength and efficiency. 

Mr. Henshaw also stigmatized those gentlemen who were present 
(acting independently as the devoted friends of the government,) as 
" spies and pimps, writing letters to IVashington.'' An honest party 
ought to fear no spies, and if he who recoils from treachery and false- 
hood and is indignant at ingratitude may be stiled a pimp, tb© title ia 
honorable. 

P. S. — It was voted to publish Mr. James' resolution in the Globe. 

GoGch and Nortan, two of the Inspectors of the Custom House, 
and members of the Hickory Club, opposed the Collector's resolu- 
tions, and advocated Mr. James'. Within ten days afterwards, both 
were dismissed from office. And it is worthy of remark, that both 
of these gentlemen had previously refused to pay the "assessment,'" 
and were consequently '' marked men." The case was so flagrant- 
ly unjust, that even Amos Kendall enquired of me the particulars^ 
Here is my answer. 

Boston, 1st September, I8SL 

To Amos Kendall, Esq. } 

4th Auditor. 5 

Dear Sir, — Tour letter of the 27th August, was received this day, 
and I "thank you kindly" for it. By some negligence, the paper al- 
luded to was not sent you ; had it been received, you would only have 
seen that Mr. James did not even mention the late difficulties. We 
all are dij;posed to heal dissention rather than exasperate it. 

Major Norton on the morning of his resignation, entered the Sur- 
veyor's room, after having an interview with the Collector. He stat- 
ed, that he was about to surrender his commission; that he was called 
upon to sacrifice eitiier his independence or his interest, and that he 
could not hesitate on the alternative. Both the General and myself 
begged of him to delay his resignation, to reflect longer upon the sub- 
ject. He answered that he was convinced the Collector intended to 
dismiss him, and that he would not be disgraced in that way, but 
would voluntarily retire. It has been apparent, ever since Norton 
refused to pay the tax for the benefit ol Nathaniel Greene and his 
endorsers, that he has been a "marked man." He tells me this 
morning, that he is about addressing a letter to you explaining his 
motives. 

Two days after the meeting of the 15th August, the Collector summon- 
ed Mr. Gooch and another oilicer to his room, and read them a lecture on 
the political subserviency of inferior officers, objecting to their maintain- 
ing political opmions in public. As these two gentlemen voted for 
the Duff Green resolution, and possess independent republican minds 
they were somewhat indignant at this attempt to overawe their free- 
dom of action and opinion. They said little however, but undoubtedly 
a knowledge of this interview, had an influence on Norton's mind. 



113 

and his mercurial temperament nntl lii;iili sonse of lionor could tint 
sul)mit to any arbitrary restraint imposed by his superior, in mutters 
where itide])endeuce is the liirlii-rii'lit of evory American ritizm. 
Mr. (looch, on the ;50tli iii>t. torwartled a letter to Major Lewis giviiij; 
his own views on tiiis suliject. 

My dear Sir, we are all |)ri)ud of and <;"ratefui to noble Kentucky. 
Alas! that the chivalry and steady loyalty to principle which distin- 
guishes her peopk', abound not everywhi.'ie. She does honor to the 
cause, and to all who aru its votaries. Would that Massachusetts 
might i/idjibe some of the same enthusiasm and jjenerons devotion to 
the republican faith. Uut we havo here not only the old aristocracy 
to contend .ijjainst, but the madness of our own friends. We deeply 
regret the late division in Boston, but not on the fiiLiids of General 
Jackson lies the lilann". It was produced by the indiscreet violence of 
the Collector and his dependants, and by them was it made public. 
Jt'e intended no such thinj;-, but actuated by honest and just motives, 
we determined, that the Jackson party of this City and State, in sjiite 
of the stealthy movtsments of some who would have manaiied it for 
selfish purposes, should assume and maintain the ground of the Jack- 
son party of the Nation. Then-lore Mr. James introduced his reso- 
lutions, since jjublishcd in the Globe ; and if you will cast your eyes 
over them, you cannot fail to perceive, tiiat no other object could have 
been intended. Are resolutions, warndy expressive of Jackson re- 
l)ublican sentiments, to be stigmatized as "Jire bratids," (as they were 
by the Collector,) in a Jackson meeting, and the ?uj)porters of the 
resolutions as '"' federalists," '• Bulletin men," •• marked men," and with 
many other opprobrious epithets ? Had the resolutions been introduced 
at a Calhoun meeting, I think they probably would have kindled a 
flame. I was surprised, and truly regretted that so much intemperate 
language was used after the reading to the resolutions, but I assure 
you it came not from our side. Messrs. James, Adams, Dexter, Nor- 
ton and Gooch were our only speakers, and they merely defended 
themselves from a very gross personal attack. The article that ap- 
peared in the Statesman on the Saturday following, and which was 
unquestionably written by the Collector, was the lirst jjuhtic declara- 
tion of the existence of dissension among us. It was unjust and very 
abusive, but we were dumb ; our regard for our party and its illus- 
trious head absorbed all jiersonal considerations. I have not since 
the 15lh, published a single article in the newspapers of this City, and 
have earnestly enjoined upon our friends to abstain from defence or 
recrimination, Mr. James has observed an entire silence in the news- 
pajier now under his control. So much for our spirit of forbearance 
and conciliati(jn. 

That we have done ri-^hl, wc are confident. Not a doubt exists in 
our minds that our leading men were deeply imitlicated in the Calhoun 
conspiracy, detected at Washington, and u-c were not to be made the 
tools of that conspiracy in this quarter, \Ve were convinceii, that there 
was a concerted plan in case the Western elections had been adverse, to 
attempt the nomination of Mr. C. as President or as Vice President 
for the third time. Our resolutions were framed to meet this jdan, 
and by exposing, to defeat it. It has been done ; the j)arty in this 
State is now on Jackson ground ; the country is grateful to us for dis- 
persing the cloudy mysteries of our city politics; we are now confident 
and united. Have we not followed the example of the Globe in op- 
1.3 



114 

posinsT the disorganizers at Washington and the opponents of the 
President? If the division made by the Globe be salutary, (as it 
surely has been,) can the same course here be baneful? But we have 
not divided. The only temporary division was occasioned by the 
plain and quiet course of setting on^ opponents a good example, and 
leaviiig them to follow it. What different mode could the friends of 
the President have adopted here, without imitating the time-serving 
conditional support, of the men we dare not trust with the character 
and policy of the .Jackson party in this State? But you have now 
nothing to a|)prehend. The elections in the Western States, and the 
complete prostration of Mr. Calhoun by his avowed nullifying senti- 
ments, in connection with "the still small voice" of faithful and ear- 
nest remonstrance uttered by the little band whom it is now proscrib- 
ing, have at last roused the Statesman from its long slumber, and it 
begins again to propound sound doctrine. Even that "great and 
good man," Duff Green, receives from his quondam worshippers an 
occasional "bullet in the thorax." Zeal may be had cheap, when it 
has no competitors for favour, and it is never more active than imme- 
diately after the explosion of a conspiracy. Suspected traitors, as 
well as new converts, are remarkable for its superabundance. 

You have therefore proof, that our efforts have not been injudicious 
or unavailing. The dumb have been made to speak, and the halt to 
march on vigorously to the battle of 1832. Our friends in the inte- 
rior of the State have been roused by the energy and fidelity we have 
dis()layed here, and the Convention at Worcester will be numerously 
attended and fired v/ith a renovated spirit in the great cause of the 
Constitution and its joreserver. If for doing as we have done, main- 
taining our truth when our superiors proved recreant ; never waver- 
ing a moment in our principles, waiting for no elections to determine 
our oscillating zeal, but in an apparently dark hour lifting up our 
voices to animate and encourage our drooping friends ; if for these 
things we are to be trodden down and cast out as unprofitable servants, 
to appease the jealousy and hatred of those whom we have shamed, 
we are of " all" political " men most miserable," and must seek in our 
devotion to principle the only consolation for our undeserved proscrip- 
tion. 

As to the reasons we have had to act as we have done, upon 
the basis of suspected treachery in our opponents, Mr. James' letter 
to the President, forwarded some days since, will give ample informa- 
tion. If you wislvany explanation from any of us, we shall be truly 
happy in obeying your commands. 

P. S. — We have just heard from the Convention. Our resolutions 
have had an excellent effect. The Resolutions of the Convention 
responded to ours, nominated the President for re-election, proposed 
a new candidate as Vice President, recommended the Globe to the 
patronage of the Republican Party, and preserved an ominous silence 
in regard to the Telegraph. When you know that here it was pro- 
posed to say nothing of the Presidential election, neither at the City 
Meeting nor at the Convention, you will perceive that "our good 
•works follow us." 

The Worcester Convention opened the eyes of the Statesman 
Leaders to the perils in which they had involved themselves. 



115 

They discovered to their utter consternation, that Mr. Cnlhoun was 
horn du comhnt, and that General Jackson would in very deed he 
a candidate for re-election without the fear of a compciitor. They 
therefore instantly recoiled from the hrinlc of the i)olitical ahvss to 
which they had inconsiderately wandered, and as an evidence t)f 
their conversion began to abuse Mr. Calhoun and his friends. 
All their zeal for State Rights evaporated in a monjcnt, and tlifv 
suddenly perceived that Southern doctrines w-ould be fatal to the 
Union. As they had abandoned General Jack.-^on when they sup- 
posed his patronage of no further benefit to themselves, so they 
abandoned Mr. Calhoun when his prospects became involved in 
clouds and darkness, and returned to tlnnr former prostrations and 
adorations before the golden calf of political authority. Feeling 
that their temporary deviation from the true (i. e. the successful) 
faith required an extraordinary expiation, their humility and rever- 
ence before the "General" was "pityful, — was wondrous pityful;" 
and like the reclaimed Catholic, they not only kissed the toe of 
their Pope with fervent devoledness, but would have gladly kissed 
anv other more ignominious portion of his body with a holy and 
humble enthusiasm. 

If my readers can sufficiently master their disgust at political 
treachery and servility as to look over the columns of " toasts" 
given by tlie Statesman party at their public festivals from 1828 to 
1632, they will remark, that the favorite subject of the Leaders 
was State Rights, then denominated the badge of Democracy. 
And Calhoun, .McDuilie, Ilayne and Hamilton were the idols of 
tlieir worship. But when the " Correspondence" had proved that 
the President's popularity was proof against every assailant, and 
that the Southern Stales Rights party was in an hopeless minority, 
then the tone of their ^- sentiments" instantly changeil, and it 
sounded " Union of the States," — "Traitors and Conspirators," — 
'•Southern Heresy," &,c. &:,c. In pr(tof of this assertion I give 
some extracts from the Statesman and Post: — 

" Thf tarilThiil, wo know, was orininaliy passed in reference, more 
to the iiitrif'-ts of politicians, than of tin; jiiililir. The |rcscnt delny 
in its niodilicatioii arises tVoiii the lik'! inllueni-i". None Imt the sin- 
rero iVifMid-* of iho pri'sont adriiinistrntion, wi>li it tnodifinl .a tln> pres- 
ent time. The nuililii-rs have iiuirli rant, Imt little sincpiity on the 
jsubjprt. Thoy wniijil lament even more bitterly \hnn Mr. Clay''< par- 
tiznn.s, to >ee tlio '|U"stion nmioal>ly and eqnilnlily settled now. With 



116 

all their pretence to disiiUerested patriotism— to pure love for the con- 
stitution, and disdain of office and power, the latter is their niain ob- 
ject, and they even hope to reach it upon the whirlwind of civil com- 
motion. They may raise that whirlwind, but it will be to them, if it 
come, the Sirocco, bearing on its wings political pestilence and death. 
The manufacturers will never be able to make a tariff so favorable 
to their interests, as at the present time. They are losing ground in 
influence daily. Will they continue to sacrifice their interests to pro- 
mote the political elevation of Mr, Clay or Mr. Webster? They will 
be unwise if they do. Are the people generally willing to hazard a 
civil commotion, that the consistent, the disinterested, the patriotic 
Mr. McDuffie, may play the nabob, under the shade of his palmetto.'' 
Surely not. Then let them look to the subject before it is too late. 
Let them by moderation disarm treason before it lakes the field." — 
May 19, 1832, 

" What might have been expected.~The NuUies and the Clay men 
are in close embrace— the five striped flag and the palmetto are en- 
twined. And why should there not be an alliance between the dis- 
unionists of Hartford and those of Columbia 1 They having a common 
object naturally travel the same road— f Ae road to ruin."— May 26, 1S32. 

" In the Senate, in which body, from the basest treachery, faction 
commands a temporary majority, Mr. Webster brought forward the 
bill for an unequal and an unconstitutional representation— and which, 
as we have before stated, passed that body by the casting vote of the 
presiding o&cer."— May 26, 1832, 

" We like the rebuke to the disunionists of the South. But to those 
who recollect Mr. Chandler in the days of the Hartford Convention, 
when he added one to the number of the disunionists at the North, it 
seems very much like Satan rebuking sin."— June 2, 1832. 

" The NuUies on the wane. — Gov. Hamilton of South Carolina, the 
head of the Nullies, has recently been elected Brigadier General, by 
a majority of one vote, over his competitor, a friend of the Union, 
This is hard sledding for the Nullies, but they will soon find it hard- 
er,"— J«ne 9, 1832. 

"How much the Coalition resembles the courtezan! How 'unfor- 
tunately Unfortunate Coalition ! how many lovers has she strangled ; 
and how many fine things did they promise her. She conspired with 
her paramours to destroy the fjiithful servants of the venerable man 
whom the people delight to honor, that she might drive him forth mad 
from his household, like the King of Babylon, to herd among strange 
beasts. Alas! the luck was altogether against the conspirators — they 
were turned out to grass themselves, and the patriarch remained 
amidst the affections of his household. But they gave not over the 
•work of their iniquity ; they thrust his steward, called by interpreta- 
tion the ' auditor,' under the fifth rib, and lo! his spirit haunts them 
and confounds their counsels; they sent forth their arrows to wound 
the patriarch's nuncio, sent abroad to the monarch whose ships com- 
pass the sea, and behold he shall return quickly, and be the head of 
their counsels— and ' Tewcer,' the nullifier, shall pass away like an 
idle wind, Alas, how well may the coalition sympathise with the un- 



117 

happy Haman ! — She has, like him, only erected a gallows for herself: 
— peace be to her ghost! wliy shouM we torture the unhappy! why 
should we scourge the 'unfortunate!' " — June 2, lb32. 

How wretched the condition of tlicse gentlemen at this moment 
in the agony of deciding whether the chances are in favour of Van 
Btircn or Judge "White! I sincerely hope, that this time, no 
honorable party may whip them, nolens volens, into the traces; 
but that they may be sutlered to plunge into the gulf, which, in the 
end, always opens to receive the political trimmer and hypocrite! 
So thorough was the change of sentiment in the minds of these 
mercenary politicians, that about the time of the Proclamation, an 
editorial article appeared in the Morning Post wherein it was de- 
clared, that "the several States, bore the same relation to the 
United States, as the several coiinties of any State did to the State 
of ichich they icere component parts J" I never heard of a feder- 
alist so nltra as to maintain such a consolidating doctrine. In 
their apprehensions, from democracy to despotism was but one 
step ! And so I fear it will prove in the end. 

Mr. Kendall, who at this time was the "power behind the 
throne," disregarding my letter, and evidently cari\ig nothing for 
the sacrifice of the two Inspectors, Gooch and Norton, who had 
fallen in the cause of the President, I tendered the resignation of 
my office to General McNiel, and offered to proceed at my own 
expense to Washington and represent the facts to the President. 
Having acted with these gentlemen, and in some measure coun- 
selled their movements, I felt, that although the vindictiveness of 
the Collector could not immediately reach me, yet I was bound in 
honor to share tlieir fate. And I felt also a profound disgust at 
the heartless ingratitude of the Government, in witnessincj with 
the most apathetic composure the destruction of its most zealous 
and disinterested defenders. General McNiel declined to accept 
my resignation, and I remained to aid in defending him against 
the burning wrath of the Collector, who, from the time of the old 
Court House meeting, until I retired from oflice, concentrated all 
its energies on the head of the General. Discovering in the Laws 
relating to the Custom House, the following passage, "the Sur. 
veyor shall in all cases be subject to the orders of the Collector," 
(or something to that effect,) he gave orders, the execution of 
which was impossible, and then inundated the General with letters, 



118 

and a voluminous correspondence, — well knowing that the General 
would rather fight a battle than write a " lengthy" epistle. His 
own part of the correspondence was despatched to Washington, 
with the view of creating an impression that the Surveyor was 
negligent and refractory; and he had the address to deceive Louis 
McLane (a man whom, as an old federalist, he most cordially 
hated,) and to extort from him an undeserved and mortifying 
menace of the Surveyor. The order particularly referred to was, 
substantially, that the Surveyor should be on five different wharves 
in Boston at the same moment! "Slightly^' Bonapartean ? As 
to myself, if looks could have annihilated me, I should have been 
incorporated with the paving stones. He passed me in the streets 
with an expression of countenance, as if he was saying, 
" Turned up at thee, the nose of our contempt P' 
I felt this treatment severely, — in the region of cachinnation ! 

Unfortunately for the projects of the Collector, the official con- 
duct and character of the Surveyor was highly appreciated by the 
Merchants of the City, and on an hint being given that the Collec- 
tor intended to resign his office, one hundred and thirty-three 
firms petitioned the Government to appoint General McNiel his 
successor ! There is no doubt that the Collector did intend to re- 
tire, and transfer his office to the ambitious Mr. Simpson. But 
this petition was a " niillifier." I remember that some years since, 
boarding with an honest farmer, one of his boys (hating to go to 
school on a fine bright morning,) complained of a violent pain in 
his stomach. The father immediately scraped from the chimney 
back, a handful of soot into a pint mug, filled it up with warm 
water, caught die young truant by the nape of his neck, layed him 
on his back, and poured the whole dose down his throat. 1 boarded 
there two years afterwards, but never heard him complain of a pain 
in the stomach again ! Mr. Collector has said nothing more -ibout 
resifirning his office since the merchants' petition in favour o! Gen- 
eral McNiel. 

My youthful reader will extract from this chapter matter deserv- 
ing of solemn consideration. I have said the moral of my story 
was, that a reliance on men, was like trusting to the baseless fabric 
of a vision ; but that principles, founded in truth, were eternal. 
Observe now how the pretenders to peculiar and exclusive repub- 
licanism, cheat you with jjrofessions and act as aristocrats in practice. 



119 

Observe how modern democracy lias degenerated into a mean and 
beggarly hankering after oflice ; a passion which extinguisiies all 
generous and patriotic sentiment; — which contracts the very soul 
into a hard lump of selfishness and cupidity ; which lures from 
their hiding places the rapacious and execrable ruffians who infest 
the community, but whom a healthy state of public morals con- 
fines to their obscure dens of vice and infamy; — wliicii makes 
politics a trade, and patriotism the last refuge of the scoundrel ! 
Observe too how little dependence the most faithful devotedness 
can place on the men whom it struggles to sustain. If it is politic 
to patronise it in a great emergency, it has its labour for its pains; 
but when its services are no longer required, it is delivered over to 
destruction with as much indifiference as Napoleon sacrificed his 
bravest troops in battle. There is no faith, honor or honesty in 
the present political parties of the Country. Therefore, trust to 
principles and not to men. 



CHAPTER XL 



BeautiiS of Jacksonism. 



" When vice triumphant holds her sovereign sway, 

" And men, through life her willing slaves, — obey; 

" E'en then the boldest start from public sneers, 

" Afraid of shame, unknown to other fears, 

" More darkly sin, by Satire kept in awe, 

" And shrink from ridicule, though not from law."— B^ron. 



The Custom House. 

My young reader, let me take you by the arm and conduct you 
into the Boston Custom House. We enter the great door in front. 
On the left hand we notice the office of the Inspectors and 
Measurers ; on the right the office of the Weighers and Gaugers, 
the House of Lords; as, if we meet one of them, you will instantly 
perceive, by his lofty, repulsive, and aristocratic demeanor.* They 
have received for several years, something like 3000 dollars per 
annum, and can afford to look magnificent. We will pass their 
offices and ascend the stairs. In that little room (over which is 
suspended a clock that is never correct,) is seated the Collector, 
probably writing political letters to Washington, or an article for 
the Morning Post. We will not enter his den, because he enacts 
the " roaring lion" on any unnecessary intrusion. On the right of 
his room is the Deputy Collector's office ; we will venture to push 
the door and entering, to survey the scene. The first person whom 
you mark is the Deputy Collector ; and you are instantly convinced 
that he is an extremely ignorant and talkative public servant. He 
is surrounded by a cloud of merchants whose business requires 
immediate despatch, and yet you hear Mr. Deputy ejaculating 
political anathemas against the U. S. Bank, the federalists, &c. &c. 
and these anathemas are so inconsiderate, that you set them down 

*See Appendix, (c.) 



121 

merely as the " ropy drivel of romantic brains." But you see 
numerous Clerks alwut him intensely occupied. Well, this 
Deputy receives 1500 dollars a year, and these indefatigable Clerks 
about, on an average, 700 dollars! The Deputy retires at 2 
o'clock, the Clerks work all the afternoon, and frequently much 
of the night. 

Let us cross to the Naval Officer's room. The Collector's door 
is open, and there he sits at 4400 dollars per annum, in conscious 
dignity, — fat, fiery, and ferocious, repelling a merchant who pre- 
sents a petition for his favourable consideration. Vou cannot 
doubt that he is a Jacksonman, and that he thinks himself a great 
man. See how he waves the hand of authority, — how stern and 
positive in his determination of the law, — how subduedly con- 
temptuous in listning to the representations of the importer. The 
sneer, the suppressed smile, the withering glance, all announce 
the candidate for higher honors, and the implacable enemy of the 
noble and generous merchants of Boston. But the spectacle is 
too revolting, so let us proceed to the Naval Officer's room. You 
see at that low desk, a gentleman in black, tall, graceful, and po- 
lite. You are impressed at once that he must be an amiable and 
honest man ; not bold to conceive, but likely to be rather in- 
domitable when he has made up his opinion. That is the Naval 
Officer. And a more honest man and liberal democrat you will 
not meet with, than L. M. Parker. They who dislike his politics, 
admire the man; and although he never gave me his confidence, 
I do but justice to my feelings when I say to you, that his talents 
are deserving of the patronage of the country, and his virtues of 
the estimation of all mankind. 

In the room of this gentleman, you find five Clerks, one of them 
a confidential Clerk of the Collector, all very diligent working- 
men. The Collector has a confidential officer in every room, so 
that every whisper against his authority is known to him and visited 
in due time on the head of the audacious offi.'nder. The Naval 
officer receives 3000 dollars per annum, the Clerks from GOO to 
1200 dollars. 

We pass to the Surveyor's room ; and we sec at a desk a gi- 
gantic and bold looking officer. After a glance at his aspect you 
will not doubt me when I tell you, that at the battle of Bridge- 
water, being desperately wounded, he repeatedly thrust his dirk into 
J6 



1 

his thigh to prevent fainting, and falling from his horse. He looks 
much more like a soldier than a Custom House officer. He has a 
Deputy and sometimes a Clerk. The respectable elderly gentle- 
man with a queue, in the corner, is the keeper of wines and spirits 
in bond. A very worthy man, but awfully Jacksonian. The 
Surveyor receives 2500, the Deputy 1500, the Clerk 600 and the 
Wine and Spirit Keeper 1095 dollars per annum. This last officer, 
contrary to law, is appointed by the Collector. He is a depiitij of 
the Surveyor, but whom he is not suffered to appoint himself, but 
has imposed upon him by the chief of the Custom House. 
Although the law on this subject is as plain and clear as the deca- 
logue, yet the Collector has always had sufficient influence with 
the numerous Secretaries of the Treasury, who like Banquo and 
his progeny have passed in rapid and melancholy procession before 
the American people, to retain this illegal, oppressive, and usurped 
authority. 

We cross the entry again to the Clearance and Coastwise room. 
You are instantly struck with the gentlemanly and modest deport- 
ment, and the calm and noiseless assiduity of the principal Clerk. 
There is not an officer in the Custom House so thoroughly ac- 
quainted with the business and operations of every Department; 
or who enjoys more of the public confidence, which he richly de- 
serves. Here we have a throng of seamen, white and black. An 
Irishman is preparing to swear that he was born in the ^^ Stat of 
JVa Yorick/^ and his friend is behind him, evidently ten years his 
junior, ready to swear that he saw him come into the world. A 
real Jonathan Jack, with a quarter pound of tobacco in his cheek, 
is deluging the floor with his incessant discharges, and damning 
Uncle Sam for not taking his measure ; insisting that after eleven 
A. M. he always settles two inches. Pompey, the " Nig," is told to 
bring his heels close to the wall, preparatory to ascertaining his 
height. He gets his heels there, but not his body, which stands 
out in " bas relief;" he grins, and is cut down an inch less than 
his actual dimensions. The Clerks in this room receive from 700 
to 1200 dollars, and every man of them performs double the duty 
of the Collector. 

We have noticed, my young friend, as we traversed the area of 
the Custom House, a very active and handsome man, diligently 
occupied in carrying out and bringing in papers, letters, and bank 



123 

bills. This is the Messenger, whose duties are particularly labo- 
rious. And yet his pay is only COO per annum. 

Well, you have now seen the interior of the Boston Custom 
House and many of its prominent officers. You have noticed, that 
the 700 dollar Clerks are a pale, lean, and Cassius-looking band : 
whereas, on the contrary, the 4 100, 3000, and 2500 dollar officers, 
are plump, ruddy, and contented. The inference is irresistible, 
that the Clerks do all the work, and their superiors luxuriate on 
their labours. And this is the fact. According to the present 
laws, compensation is graduated in the inverse ratio of the labour 
performed. The Collector merely sits in his " sanctum sanc- 
torum," like the grand Lama of Thibet, touching 4400 dollars a 
year and a third part of the forfeitures, amounting on an average 
to 500 dollars more. Ilis Deputy, the slave of his office, receives 
1500 dollars. And the Permit Clerk, who nearly faints under the 
pressing, incessant, and numerous calls upon his attention, 700 or 
800 dollars! This is not just, and therefore ought not to be suf- 
fered in a Government which ought to be founded on justice. 
And why should the Collector receive a greater compensation than 
the Naval officer? The duty of the last is to revise the calcula- 
tions of the other. Is not the labour equal 1 And why should 
either of these officers receive more than the Surveyor? His 
duties are more onerous than either of the others. And why should 
the truly plodding slaves be cut down to a beggarly remuneration, 
when they actually perform all the business of the Departments? 
The whole system is wrong, adopted from the English system, and 
entirely incompatible with republican institutions. But the ex- 
pectation of any beneficial change under the present Secretary of 
the Treasury, whom the Collector " holds in his fist," is perfectly 
futile. It is barely possible, that he might consent to increase the 
salaries of the Clerks G 1-4 cents per diem, deducting the same 
amount from the salaries of the over-paid officers ! For with Mr. 
Woodbury, a fourpenco-halfpenny is a great thing! "Put money 
in thy purse," is his rule of action. 

Let us, my young friend, step into this little room and sit down, 
while I relate to you some of the " secrets of this prison house." 

With the exception of the Naval officer and Surveyor and their 
Clerks, every other officer of the numerous corps attached to the 
Custom House is appointed by the Collector ; and is liable to be 



Removed without a moment's warning, for the slightest offence or 
for no offence, but merely at the whim and caprice of the Collector. 
You perceive what a fearful influence, therefore, he must exercise 
over their conduct and opinions. For the sudden dismission of an 
officer while in the faithful discharge of his duty, and '' when he 
thinks, good easy man, full surely his greatness is a ripening," 
and when his domestic arrangements for the year have been made 
in the confidence of a certain salary, — inevitably plunges him into 
extreme embarrassment and distress, if it does not drive him to 
desperation. 

There are 53 officers thus attached to the Custom House who 
hold their offices at the pleasure of the Collector. And what an 
enormous patronage is wielded by one man ! Here is, I believe, a 
correct statement of its amount. 

23 Inspectors, - - - a 1095 each per ann. §25,185 



7 Weighers and Gangers, 


a 3000 






21,000 


5 Measurers of Salt and Coal, 


a 2000 






' 10,000 


1 Deputy Collector, 


a 1500 






1,500 


4 Clerks, .... 


a 1200 each 






4,800 


7 Clerks, .... 


a 800 






5,600 


2 Appraisers, . _ _ 


a 1500 






3,000 


1 Storekeeper, ^ . . 


a 1200 






1,200 


2 Clerks in Store, 


a 800 each 






1,000 


1 Messenger, pay, including rent and fuel. 






,800 



63 Oiiicers. Emoluments, §74,685 

And this statement does not include the Keepers of the Light 
Houses, nor the Custom-House Printers, nor the Boatmen, nor the 
Truckmen, nor the temporary Clerks ! And it refers only to the 
direct patronage and influence of the Collector ; — his indirect 
influence I firmly believe controuls every other department in the 
District, and nearly every Custom-House appointment in the State 
of Massachusetts ! His entire patronage must be equal to one 
hundred thousand dollars a year J 

This thriving and well disciplined corps o^ fifty -three Custom- 
House dependants are distributed throughout the several Wards of 
the City ; and it has been to me matter of astonishment that with 
such tremendous power and such devoted partisans, the Collector 



125 

has never been able to raise a more forniidable Jackson party in 
the City and State. At the last election its relntive strenj,nli was 
less than at any time since the election of Jackson. A ntible evi- 
dence this, my dear Sir, of tlie stern patriotism and inllexiblc 
integrity of the New-Enirland character! 

Let us pass to another subject; — and I tiiink you will admit, 
after hearing my remarks, that no Merchant in active business 
ought ever to be appointed Collector of the Port where he resides. 
Mr. Ilenshaw, when he consented to forego his loftier expectations 
and accept the controul of a power equal to 100,000 dollars per 
annum, was the principal partner of a house extensively engaged 
in the importation of drugs and medicines. On his appointment 
he advertised tiiat " he had retired froui the firm," — as, by the law 
lie was compelled to do ; for no Custom-House Oflicer is permitted 
to engage in trade. But the house of Ilenshaw & Co. survived, 
and its business has ever since been conducted by two of his 
brothers. And now let us see how the house of Henshaw &/ Co. 
is represented in the Boston Custom House. By their brother, as 
Collector ; by a brother-in-law, as Weigher and Ganger, and by 
two of their former Clerks, as Public Store Keepers and Appraisers ! 
Now all this may be very fair, but certainly Henshaw & Co. have facil- 
ities in the transaction of their business infinitely superior to any 
other merchants in Boston, and all others engaged in the same trade 
contend against an unequal competition. Suppose they import 
100 casks of wine ? Their brotlier-in-law gauges it: — it is found 
to be damaged — one of their former clerks, an appraiser, assesses 
the damages — and, finally, the amount of duty is determined by 
their brother the Collector, whose decision is irrevocable. 

Are you not convinced that this is not as it should be ? The 
mere advertising that a partner withdraws from a firm, where all 
are brethren, may exonerate him from legal liability, but is it con- 
clusive as to the fact? Is there not such a thing as a "sleeping 
partner?" Ought there not to be required ak oath that the con- 
nection has actually been dissolved ? These are considerations 
which every one jealous of the purity of our republican institu- 
tions has a right to indulge. Suppose, for instance, that a mer- 
chant tailor had been appointed a Navy Agent, and thereupon had 
given public notice that he had retired from the firm with which 
he had hitherto been actively engaged. Suppose his name oblit- 
erated from the sign board suspended over the shop door, leaving 



126 

only that of his former partner. And suppose, that there was a 
secret engagement, that ostensibly, there should be no connection 
in business, but that privately they preserved the original alliance. 
Well, the Navy Agent advertises to contract with the tailors to 
furnish 1700 suits for the marines. Is there not in the case above 
supposed, a most coaxing invitation, a subduing temptation to 
make the contract with himself? This is an imaginary case, in- 
troduced only to illustrate my ideas, but a case which every man 
perceives might very possibly occur. There should be required a 
solemn oath administered, quarterly, by the Judge of the District 
Court. 

I observed, my young friend, that when I named the enormous 
amount of emolument received by the Weighers and Gangers of 
the Custom House, your surprise, which was quite natural, after 
noticing the very easy life they lead. Some of the members of 
Congress who never saw salt water or a Custom House, have been 
made to believe, that out of the sums charged against them in the 
Blue Book, they are compelled to pay their workmen and assistants. 
This is an error; the annual amount of their fees recorded in the 
^ook is clear profit, after deducting all expenses. And I was 
never satisfied that even this, great as it is, was all. The law re- 
quires that their accounts shall be examined and certified by the 
Surveyor. While General Dearborn was Collector, the Deputy 
Surveyor kept the Books of the Weighers and Gaugers. But 
when, under the Jackson "reform" dynasty,* I came in as his suc- 
cessor, they kept their Books among themselves, and the Surveyor, 
on information of certain proceedings, considered by him to be 
illegal and corrupt, refused to certify their accounts. But that 
made no difference with the pliant Secretaries of the Treasury, 
whose master " assumed all responsibilities." The accounts were 
passed just as well without the legal requirements as with them ! 

The transaction, of which almost daily complaint was made at 
the Survpvor's office, (while I was an inmate,) by the Inspectors, 
I must explain minutely. Because it is a most gross fraud on the 
Treasury, and discloses the source li.»m whence these wealthy 
Weighers and Gaugers have imbibed their undeserved riches. 
Suppose a cargo of St. Croix Rum, or several tons of Russia 
Cordage, is imported into Boston. The importers enter this 

*It will die nasty in 1836! 



127 

merchandise subject to debenture, that is, to be rc-shippcd after- 
wards, to a foreign port, wlien they would be entitled to a draw- 
back of the duties. The Rum is gauged and the Cordaire 
weighed, and both are then deposited in the Public Stores. Six 
months after, the importers take out papers from the Custom House 
to ship both these articles to a foreign market, and an order is is- 
sued to the Ganger and Weigher to gauge and weigh them, before 
going on board the vessel. Do they obey the order ? Never, 
where the whole quantity imported is to be re-shipped. The 
Gauger and the Weigher to whom the order is directed, goes to 
the Gauger and Weigher who took the guage and wciglit at their 
importation ; copies from his record the gauge and weight, and 
returns the same on the order, xvithout even sceiv^ the articles. 
He knows not but the casks are empty, nor that half the Cordage 
is re-shipped. But he charges his fees, as if he had actually per- 
formed th.p duty required. In this way they make each a thousand 
dollars a \ car, without moving from their chairs. Now the law 
declares, that if any Weigher or Gauger certifies to the weight or 
gauge of debenture goods, without actually weighing and gauging 
the same, he shall pay a Hne, and on the second offence be dis- 
missed from office. No fine was ever exacted in my day, and 
although the Collector knew of the fact, (for I and others informed 
him,) no one of them was ever dismissed from oilJce; but on the 
contrary, they have always been the pet corpy. 

You see, my friend, that in this mode seven thousand dollars a 
year has been, for five years past, plundered out of the money of 
the people. Put this among the other blessings of a refann Ad- 
ministration, which encourages its friends to grasp all they may, 
but denounces its opponents as prodigals and profligates. 

This disposition to make free with the public monies, which, 
beginning with the President, (who has seized tlie public Treasury,) 
extends downwards to the very meane.-t of his oflicers, has been 
manifested in another remarkable transaction of the Collector. 
His salary is paid out of certain fees established by law, and which 
are exacted from the merchants. He cannot exceed 44U() dollars 
per annum, but the fees usually are several thousands of dollars 
greater in amount, than the Collector's salary. The surplus is to 
be deposited in the Treasury of the United States. In 18.33, there 
was a large surplus, and the Collector calling his Clerks before 



128 

him, distributed it among them, to one a hundred dollars, to 
another a hundred and fifty, and to another two hundred dollars. 
By what other authority this was done I know not. By what law 
it could legally be done, I know not. But that it was done, I do 
know. This is another item of the precious benefits conferred on 
the country, by the man " who has filled the measure" of its degra- 
dation. What an uproar such a transaction would have excited in 
the '^ democratic'^ party, had it been committed under Adams' 
Administration, or by a federal Collector! But now, in this glo- 
rious reign of false democracy, peculation is not considered a very 
bad thing, but he who plunders the most, is the best fellow. 
Bid well and Skinner might now return to the United States and 
be honored for the deeds which some 20 years ago drove them from 
the country. Instead of finding themselves ousted from society, 
they would fraternise with the majority. A hundred thousand 
U. S. Officers would hail them as their precursors, the John Bap- 
tists of their political creed. For corruption, tolerated in high 
places, has infected all parts of the Union. Multitudes of good 
men who condemn the crime, and would sooner cut off their 
bands than commit it, have yet, in consequence of long witnessing 
its successful perpetration, lost in some measure their just sense of 
its enormity. This is one of the remarkable characteristics of the 
times. 

As another evidence of the disposition of many of the public 
officers to grasp every pecuniary advantage under this " Reform" 
Administration, let me tell you, that True & Greene, under the 
Collectorship of Mr. Henshaw, have executed the printing for the 
Custom House, which amounts to a very great annual sum. And 
they have been well paid for it too ! For the Blanks used in the 
Surveyor's office, they charged one dollar and fifty cents for each 
quire of M sheets .' I presume that all the other Custom House 
Blanks were paid for in the same proportion. Now it was notorious 
throughout the Custom House, (and indeed it has been asserted in 
the Boston newspapers,) that a respectable printer of the City had 
proposed in writing to the Surveyor, to print all the Blanks used in 
his office for one dollar a quire; and had also said, that he would 
execute the whole printing for the Custom House at 75 cents per 
quire, or at half the sum paid True & Greene ! And yet True & 
Greene have been continued by the Collector as printers for the 



120 

OlTice. receiving double the sum lor which ihd worlc might have 
been perforined. It was universally bslieveil that they oiucd ilw 
Collector. So here you see Mr. Nathaniel Greene receiving W)()«) 
dollars per annum as Post-master, attempting lo impose an as- 
sessment on the Custom House ollicers lijr 1"21K) <]oliars per amiuiu 
more, — and, with his partner True, pocketing douhle compensation 
as Custom House |)rinier, all for the purpose of paying his debts \(> 
his confederates ! If this was not a prettily devised scheme lor 
making money, there never was one! 

But this is not all. You notice that portly gentleman movinji 
stealthily up stairs. That is ]\Ir. Robinson, an Appraiser, ihe 
usual agent for spunging the inferior officers of puHlical cuutrilni- 
tions ; that dry-rot which is the cause of their cmbarrassmcnls, 
and the evidence of their servitude. If one of Benton's, or Hill's, 
or Shepley's speeches is publislied in pamphlet form, or a demo- 
cratic handbill is issued, or placards printed and posted at the 
corners of the streets previous to an election, or votes printed ami 
sent to the several counties of the State, True &, Greene are paid 
for their labours and expenses by the contriblitions of the public 
officers. It was customary to notify each of them of the amount 
which fell to his share. I find among my original minutes the 
following. "May 21, 1831. This day Mr. Robinson came into 
the office" [the Surveyor's] " to collect money for, as he said, True 
& Greene's bill for printing votes at the late Senatorial and Rep- 
resentative City election. Senatorial, '31 dollars — Representative, 
31 dollars — G2 dollars. General McNiel not being present, I de- 
clined paying anything until his return, expressing however my 
dislike to the claim." 

Now at this very election, the greatest Jackson vote given in the 
City for any of their candidates for Senators or Rej)rescntativcs 
was less than 400 ! Nearly every one thought it extreme folly to 
run any ticket at all ; but True &l Greene could make money ont 
of the job, and therefore the tickets were prepared and printed ! 
On the 2:Jd of 3Iay, two days after, "Mr. Robinson calleil upon 
the General on the above business; but the character of the claim 
was changed. It was now said to be for distributrnz Ilcjiublicuii 
Mas^azines. The General declined paying, wi the ground, that he 
had distributed 10 iMagazines per month at his own expense. I 
have distributed the same number." 
17 



130 

So the room rent, lights, and stationary, required for all political 
meetings, were paid for in the same convenient manner, and if, at 
the party festivals, (usually about four a year,) the expenditures 
exceeded the receipts, the excess was made up among the poor 
plucked bipeds of the Custom House. An ordinary officer found 
himself hardly more than merely a disbursing agent of his own 
salary, for the benefit of his party and its leaders. And let it be 
remembered, that a refusal to contribute to any of these political 
assessments, would have been considered treason against legitimate 
and arbitrary authority, and would probably have been visited by 
consequences, which few officers had the firmness to encounter. 

As money, like power, "is always stealing from the many to the 
few,'^ so, although subjected to such incessant and severe extortions, 
the inferior officers of the Customs were not suffered, in many in- 
stances, to reap even the legal rewards of their superior vigilance 
and fidelity. Many seizures were made by the Inspectors, while I 
was in office, by which they ought to have become the possessors 
of a considerable forfeiture. But after the property, (if of large 
amount,) say a vessel detected in smuggling, had been libelled and 
condemned, and the District Attorney and Marshal had secured a 
fair proportion of their legal perquisites, a petition was generally 
forwarded to the Secretary of the Treasury, signed by the Collec- 
tor and those officers for its liberation ; which petition was always 
granted, and in consequence, the seizing officer was left with com- 
paratively empty pockets. 

Individuals detected in smuggling are liable to a large fine, a 
proportion of which goes to the complainant. Executions have 
been obtained on such charges, but never levied, and thus nobody 
is benefited but the Attorney, who probably gets his costs from the 
Treasury. Now such things are destructive of all vigilance and 
zeal for the public service, in the out-door officers, and were always 
in my time, a subject of bitter complaint. 

I could go on and enumerate many other abuses of authority, 
but I loathe the subject, and have room for but one more. I feel 
a conviction, that under the present, and I fear under the succeed- 
ing Administration, if every thing I have stated, aye and much 
more, was proved beyond the possibility of a doubt, there would 
be no remedy. Public virtue is so nearly extinct, or rather lives 
in so few patriotic breasts, that some vast calamity, some fearful 



131 

judgment of Heaven, is necessary to revive it. And it is impend- 



ing ! 



" Like master like man," says an olJ proverb. The President 
liaving declared that lie alone is the Government, ail his under- 
strappers follow his example. The law provides that various ques- 
tions, of doubtful import, which may arise in the Custom House, 
shall be determined by the Collector, Naval Officer, and Surveyor, 
or by a majority of this board. Now, after the old Court House 
meeting before described, the Collector suspended all intercourse 
and consultation with the Surveyor. If one of the questions con- 
templated in the law came before him, he took the opinion of the 
Naval officer alone, — the Surveyor was never apprised that such a 
question was under consideration. He was as unceremoniously 
thrust out from executing a part of his duty, as the President 
would eject the Senate from all participation in the Government. 
The object was manifestly to degrade the Surveyor into a creature 
of his will, and to deprive him of all independent action and au- 
thority. And thus many decisions were made, wherein by the law 
the Surveyor should have been consulted, of which, probably to 
this day, he is wholly ignorant. It was the same in every transac- 
tion ; the same arbitrary and engrossing spirit, sat like an incubus, 
on all the movements in the Custom House. 

And I have no doubt that the recent removal of the Naval 
Officer, was in consequence of some conscientious resistance to 
the will of the Collector. Something must be allowed to the mer- 
cenary disposition of Mr. Woodbury, but much more to the intol- 
erant and domineering temper of his favourite Deputy, Mr. 
Henshaw. 

I have one point more in relation to the Custom House and then 
I shall dismiss the subject. From the day of my entering it till I 
bade a willing adieu to its walls, I could not but remark with some 
surpri.se, the decided hostility of the Collector to the Merchants of 
Boston. Whether the hostility was occa.sioncd by the fact that 
they are generally opposed to him in politics, or that they were 
opposed to his appointment originally, or that he is conscious of a 
kind of inferiority to most of them, and of indescrt in holding the 
post he does, I cannot say; but that he feels a peculiar degree of 
envy and hatred for the whole class, is certain. Now on this 
matter I would not say a word, had I not frequently noticed among 



132 

my country neijihbours and brethren an erroneous estimate of the 
character of the Boston Merchants. It is too frequently supposed, 
that possessing great wealth as many of them do, they are proud, 
aristocratic and overbearing; and the Jackson newspapers en- 
courage this false notion as much as possible. Now, they who are 
better acquainted with them know them to be the chief benefactors 
of the community, the founders of most of the liberal, literary and 
benevolent institutions of the State. I cannot go into an enumer- 
ation of the many instances of their bounty, but I will draw a brief 
sketch of a few individuals. A young man, of good habits and 
sound moral and religious principles, but poor, is sent from the 
counting-room of his employer to France, where temptations must 
inevitably assail him on every side, and of the most enticing and 
formidable description. He resides in Paris, "Vanity Fair," for 
many years, discharging all his arduous duties to his principal with 
diligence and fidelity. At length, he engages in business for him- 
self, and after some more years of industry and good management, 
he returns to the United States a man of great wealth, and with 
virtue unsullied. He retires to the paternal mansion in Worcester 
County, now become his own, and mingles in the society and 
pastimes of his neighbors. Does he attempt to increase his wealth 
by loans at exorbitant interest, or to grasp with a miser's hand, the 
farms surrounding his estate. Not at all ! He seeks occasion of 
dnins: good, and one of his first acts of public benevolence, is a 
donation of 20,000 dollars to the American Tract Society. 

Another Boston citizen, by careful diligence and shrewd calcu- 
lation, acquires, in process of time, a vast fortune. Does he hoard 
it, or seek advantages from the times, to increase its amount? 
No! His hand is "open as day to melting charity;" his house is 
the shrine of the poor and miserable, and when a whole class of 
the wretched can be relieved and made comparatively happy by 
new discoveries applicable to their situation, he gives an estate of 
30 000 dollars to the Institution for the Blind. Struck with such 
noble generosity, his fellow-citizens propose him for their Repre- 
.-^pntative to Congress. He emphatically declines: — the heaven- 
l)f)rn spirit of benevolence could not be tarnished by even a sus« 
j icion of worldly motives. And yet he was undoubtedly the ablest 
jiian in the City for the station he was solicited to occupy. 

One more instance. One who began with nothing, by dint of 



133 

industry and economy, (mark that, in all tlie instances I have 
mentioned,) acquires a handsome competency, when in the order 
of Providence he is smitten with sore diseases, and doomed to the 
solitary and grievous life of a sick chamber. But his mind and 
its spirit of enterprise survive, altlioiigh his body is prostrated and 
racked with pains. He continues his mercantile speculations for 
some years, with ardor and success. For himself or his depen- 
dents? No! He was the founder of those noble institutions, the 
McLean Hospital, and Asylum for the Insane. 

I must stop here, because there rush upon my recollection so 
many instances of munificent benefactions to the public from the 
mercantile class of our fellow-citizens that a whole book would be 
required to record tiiem. 

And this is a sample of the class of men so peculiarly obnoxious 
to the President and his party ! 

Let us leave this place my young friend, let us quit this Avernus 
of corrupt and malign passions, and breathe once more the pure 
air of Heaven. Here we part; I pray you remember and con- 
sider the moral of my statements, and dedicate youi'self to restor- 
ing to your country the ancient purity of its institutions. Farewell ! 



Parly Fidelily. 

In former chapters I have shown, that the Leaders of the States- 
man Party would have abandoned Crawford for Adams, on proper 
encouragement; did abandon Jackson for Calhoun, when they 
supposed his prospects paramount ; and on the discovery of their 
error instantly, like rats from a sinking ship, fled to the refuge of 
Van Buren. And I hope in justice, that, for his encouragement 
of such mercenary desertion, he may hereafter sufier the pang, 
"sharper than serpent's tooth," of beholding these fostered reptiles 
rushing into the embraces of his ^Fesf^T/z rii-a/.' That they u-ili 
become the partizans of Judge White the moment they think his 
chances of success greater than the Dutchman's, is certain : with 
a bargain, if possible, — if not, without one: but they will trust to 
luck, and the magnanimity of the Judge. At all events, they will 
be on tiie strongest side. Already the Post and Statesman, advo- 



134 

cates Van Buren's cause with an " if" — *' if — he should be the 
candidate of the Convention" — of office-holders ! And these 
"cow-boys" of party, now assure the President, (as they have for 
Jive years to my knowledge,) that even Massachusetts is coming 
over, — revolutionizing, " marching up to the chalk !" And he be- 
lieves their assurances! The precise share of knavery and credu- 
lity it is difficult to distribute, among the dupers and the dupe! 
But 1 am confident, (for 1 know the characters of the men and 
their objects,) that if even Mr. Webster's chance, on deliberate 
and solemn consideration and calculation, was determined to be 
the most favourable, a tender of their services and their party 
would be proffered to him, on the condition (mark that,) that their 
oj^ces should be untouched. 

On the 2d April, 1832, Judge M'Lean of Ohio, being at Boston, 
was entertained at the hospitable mansion of Dr. Ingalls. It was 
at that time thought probable that the Judge would be a formidable 
if not a successful candidate for the next Presidency, after the 
" Old Hero." He therefore was an object of intense interest to 
all the office-holders and office-seekers. The "good Doctor" had 
waked from the efiects of his Jackson soporific, and was, and prob- 
ably now is, a disinterested and warm friend of the Judge. The 
Collector and his brothers were among the anxious and obsequious 
guests on that important evening. But their admiration immedi- 
ately ceased, when the Judge's star became dim, and he afterwards 
received divers unkind thrusts in the Statesman and Post. This 
was a matter of course. 

Judge M'Lean, like one of our summer thunder-storms coming 
from the West, looked very threatening for a time and discharged, 
at a distance, several powerful streams of electricity : but he never 
rose to the zenith, and after a little while was dispersed in flying 
and windy clouds. Such is the fate of numerous aspiring poli- 
ticians. We see a similar catastrophe happening to some of them 
every day. The fire of ambition being applied, they mount like 
rockets, but burst at a slight elevation, and fall extinguished me- 
teors to the earth, " never to rise again." 

There is my old fiivourite Col. Benton, who in former years ex- 
torted very sincere respect and admiration, but having since "given 
up to party what was meant for mankind," is now lying prone on 
earth a harmless and exploded "Congreve." 



135 

From the appearance of the Correspondence to the re-election 
of Jackson, it was most amusing to watch the devious course, the 
uncertain and hesilatiucr movements, and the occasional utter con- 
fusion of the Leaders of the Statesman party. Governed by one 
motive only, the love of money, tliey were always on the alert to 
trim their sails to meet the political gale, but that period was so 
tempestuous, that they were continually t.ikcu "all aback," and 
frequently were on their " beam ends." A few days before the 
explosion of the Consprracy, the Statesman in alluding to General 
D. Greene called him '^ that great and good man," and he had 
for years been their most valuable and steadfast friend. But no 
sooner did the Leaders discover that the General had got on the 
Josing side, then at him they went in their paper, and he was "great 
and good'' no longer. An article soon after appeared in the 
Statesman, lauding the virtues, abilities, faithfulness and genuine 
republicanism of the Hon. S. D. Ingham, Secretary of the Treasu- 
ry, and trusting that this main-stay of democracy would lon^ be 
continued in his ofiicial station. In about a week afterwards, Mr. 
Ingham was dismissed from office, when those consistent and 
generous gentlemen pounced upon the e;:-Secretary with a zeal and 
rancour surpassed only by the Globe. Mr. Duane's appointment 
was hailed as a triumph of democracy, and hints touching Mr. 
M'Lane were thrown out, that " there had been too much federal 
leaven in the Cabinet." But the talented and indexible son of old 
Bill Duane, old Aurora Duane, would soon restore harmony and 
confidence. Mr. Secretary Duane was compelled to " walk the 
plank," and he had no sooner sent up his last bubble from the 
" vasty deep" of politics, than they abused him like a pick-pocket, 
and this lofty champion of democracy dwindled away to a puny 
strippling, who was advised to '' as!c his Pa" as to his future 
course. 

When Isaac Hill's fortunes seemed at a low ebb and Woodbury 
began to sport, like a porpoise, in the ocean of royal favour, poor 
Isaac rarely could e.xtort a nod Irom his quondam friends, for Levi 
was the patron saint of New-England democracy — or rather the 
Mcmnon of the Granite State. But Isaac having wheedled him- 
self into the Senate of the U. State's, was instantly restored to im- 
portance and favour; and we then read in the Statesman eloquent 
paragraphs, following each other in regular succession, headed 



136 

" Hon. Levi Woodbury"—" Hon. Isaac Hill." The oil of flattery 
was equally distributed between them. 

When the nomination of Mr. Van Buren as Minister to England 
was rejected by the Senate, the principal Leader said " we ought 
not to be hasty in nominating a Vice-President. Mr. Van Buren 
cannot be Vice-President. The rejection may do something 
towards making him President hereafter, but not Vice-President 
now. King, Preble, and Ware of Maine have called the Argus to 
account and Maine will not be for it. I think the Baltimore Con- 
vention next May will not be able to agree on a candidate for Vice- 
President." 

And even when President Jackson issued his famous Proclama- 
tion, these timid and calculating friends held back, to watch its 
effect on the popular opinion, and took no part in the meeting at 
Faneuil Hall with the immense multitude of citizens who sustain- 
ed it so enthusiastically. They did not hold themselves aloof from 
principle; for when it was manifest that the Proclamation was 
popular, the Post came out with political doctrines as much more 
ultra federal than the President's, as were his to the doctrines 
of the Nullifiers. 

I will pursue this subject no further. If any of my readers 
would read a history of political treachery, faithlessness, and 
knavery, let them procure the files of the Statesman and Post for 
the period at which I have been merely glancing. 

The half is not told. It will be seen at once, that these men 
belong to no party but their own ; that they possess no settled po- 
litical principle, and that a statesman, ambitious of elevation, who 
depends upon their assistance, builds his house upon the sand. 



Post Office. 

There is a propensity to excuse political wickedness and corrup- 
tion, if the perpetrator happens to be a ''clever fellow," and he 
who openly plunders the public purse gains a host of friends, pro- 
vided he secures an ample "sufficiency." How many move in the 
first circles in consideration of their wealth, which is known to 
have been acquired by extortion and fraud ? Money is power, and 



1.37 

power always has its dependents and its parasites. These are 
general remarks, and not intended to be applicable to any particu- 
lar individual. 

It cannot be denied that the Post-master of Boston is a very 
social, liberal, and gowl-natured man. Nor can it be doubted that 
he obtained his lucrative post to enable him to discharge his debts 
to his confederates. Had he owed them nothing, it is possible he 
might have risen to the elevation of an Inspector, but no higher. 
Fortune has favoured him, and under her smiles he takes the world 
as it goes, with jollity and unconcern. Surrounded by e.vperienced 
and active Clerks, his office is a sinecure ; the honors and profits 
are his, the labours and watchings belong to his assistants. But 
he passes as a very civil and accommodating Post-master, and so 
he is. 

As I have before stated, there have at various times since his ap- 
pointment, particularly when disruptions appeared in the Boston 
Jackscu party, been bitter complaints publicly uttered, against the 
inanaaenient in his office. No direct charge of criminal inter- 
ference with its regular operation has been alleged, but facts have 
been stated of the extraordinary delay attending the transmission 
of some letters and documents, and the loss of others, which have 
excited suspicions of culpable negligence. I concern myself not 
with these, but shall refer to my own e.xperience along and that of 
recent date. 

When I left the Custom House and retired into the country, the 
whole Statesman faction were my enemies, personal as well as po- 
litical. I had no personal animositij against any of their number, 
but confess to a profound contempt and disgust at their mercenary 
and arbitrary proceedings. For more than a year before this event, 
I believe none of them had spoken to me, or even showed me the 
common civility of an acquaintance on the public promenades. 
They knew I had detected their duplicity and faithlessness, and 
therefore supposed, very justly, that I held them in scorn and 
beneath my notice. And they also knew that my neck could not 
be bent to the "collar." I was a zealous and active member of 
my party, but no partizan. And when the mad deeds of the Presi- 
dent threw the whole Union into tumult and dismay, they heard 
me openly denouncing the insidious advisers who had wrought 
him to such insane polijcy. And as with them "he who doubted 
18 



138 

was damned," I was an outcast from iheir councils and con- 
federacy. 

In the country I hoped, with hook and line, tracing the clear 
streamlet 

" In those deep solitudes and awful cells 

Where heavenly, pensive, contemplation dwells," 

to renovate my health, and pluck up fresh energy for future use- 
fulness. And also to exchange the withering eastern winds of the 
sea-board, which always with me induce the " blue stage" of the 
cholera, for the invigorating breezes of the mountains. Notifying 
my friends of my intended place of retirement, and confiding in 
the regularity of the mails to prevent my affairs from falling into 
embarrassment for the want of information, I proceeded thirty 
miles from the City, and sat down on the high lands, with five 
trout streams, never violated by scientific sportsman, all within five 
miles of my residence. The season was unpropitious; incessant 
rains flooding the meadows, and destroying the trout fishery. I 
am somewhat of an enthusiast in this sport. It is impossible for 
any man to penetrate alone the solemn depths of frowning forests, 
without feeling the " organ of adoration" excited. He " sees God 
in clouds and hears him in the winds," and he finds " sermons in 
stones, and good in everything." I have felt infinitely more devout 
while treadir^g a trout stream than I ever did in a church. And 
the reflection, 

" These are thy glorious works, Parent of good," 
was, on such occasions, ever present to my mind. It is a most 
captivating, most purifying amusement; and one day of lonely 
•' trouting" makes a man a better citizen for six months afterwards. 
Try it, and be convinced. 

But to arrest this digression; how I sped in my correspondence 
with my friends in Boston, may be seen by the following letter to 
Nathaniel Greene, the Post-master, to which he never has returned 
an answer. 

To Nathaniel Greene, Esq. ? 

Post-master of Boston. ^ 

Sir, — Will you do me the favour to give some explanation of the 
following facts, relative to your official duties: — 

In May last, residing in the country, I received through the Post 
Office at Dunstable, New-Hampshire, a letter from a friend in Bos- 
ton, directed to me at "Dunstable, Massachusetts.^' Informing him 



1.39 

of tbis miscarriage, lie directed his second letter to riio as follows: — 
" Dunstnble, ICJ^Massachtisetts." This letter like the former, was 
pent to New-Hampshire. He wrote n third time, and endorsed on his 
letter — " Sot Ncic-Ifa7nps/iire. Please notice, as .limilar letters have 
been sent there." This letter also went to the New-Hampshire Office. 
Now yon are aware, that there is a reijular mail from Boston to Dim- 
stable, Mass. And it is worthy of remark, that my Boston news- 
papers, dnrinp tiie same time, were rejinlarly forwarded to the Massa- 
ehnsett? Office. As these letters related to some money transactions, 
which by the neglii^enee in your Office were thrown into confusion, I 
conceive I have a right to demand an explanation, if not a legal satis- 
faction. 

In August I removed to Bedford, Mass. and since my residence in 
this place, I have addressed Jh'c letters on business, to a gentleman in 
Boston, only one of which, as he states, has been received: — and that 
one, was deposited by a neighbour in the Boston Post Office. The 
other four, sent by mail, are all lost. The gentleman assures me that 
he has written tirice to me at Bedford, Mass. I have received no let- 
ter from him. He further states, that one of his two letters was, after 
a time, returned to him from your Office broken open, with an en- 
dorsement thereon, purporting to be by the Post-master of Bedford, 
Mass.. viz: — '^ there is no such person here; supposed to be intended 
for New- Bedford.'" Now the Post-master here solemnly declares, 
that he never made such an endorsement on any letter directed to me 
since my residence in thi^ place. As there is only a small mail bair, 
containing letters and papers, between this town and Boston, which is 
not opened on the route, the fate of the six letters above mentioned, 
is very mysterious. All this time my Boston newspapers have been 
regidarly received. This last correspondence, like the former, related 
to pecuniary transactions, which your negligence, or something worse, 
has involved in confusion and loss. 

As it seems to be impossible to secure the safe arrival of anv of my 
letters at 3'our Office, I am constrained to address you tlirungh tho 
|)ui)Iic press, and to solicit some explanation of such extraordinary 
and suspicious transactions. Yours, Rcspectfullv. 

Bedford, Mass. Nov. 4th, 1834. 

I (lid intend to publish this letter in tlie newspapers, but 1 
pitied tlic poor fellow. He has quite cnou^^li now on his hands to 
contend witli, and is probably uitli Iiis patron in his last a;^onics. 
Let them die in peace, their political death I Nothing can save 
Mr. Barry but an attempt at assassination, and there are expert 
hands at Washington in loading pistols— ;2u//ciot/.s^/. Let Mr. 
Greene go to Washington and arrange the affair with the Post- 
Mastcr General. J*ec that the tubes of the pistols, for the prim- 
ing, are capacious. Then ram down the ball firstt., and the pon- 
der and wad over it. On with a cap. and hire some execrable 
limik-mnv Ut fire them off. " iVovidence will interpose," a!id 
Barry will be saved. 'I'hen to avuid di'tection, prick some mealed 



140 

powder into the priming tubes, — it requires but a little; put on 
another cap, and off it goes, by the "particular interposition of 
Providence!" And Mr. Barry is a martyr, "by Brevet!" 
And Greene his "bottle holder," amidst the fires of persecution. 
But I have done with the Post Ofilce. 



Scratching Backs. 

There is at Boston a certain Political Club called the Wash- 
ington Society, instituted I believe in 1812, by the democratic 
party, to which, in those tempestuous days, it proved a useful 
auxiliary. In 1827 or 1828, by some dexterous manoeuvre, and 
by the negligence of the " Adams democrats," who were the 
majority, the government of this Society passed into the hands 
of the Statesman party, who, immediately voting in a host of their 
friends, secured themselves from any future disturbance in their 
possessions. This Society for the last six years has embraced a 
large proportion of the public officers, and has been entirely 
under their controul. On the 22d February annually, they as- 
semble in the evening to choose officers, and eat a supper, the 
President of the past year presiding at table. And this dis- 
tinguished personage, and the standing committee, usually nomi- 
nate their successors, by which means the power is always con- 
tinued "in the family." I I'cmember one instance when Mr. 
Brodhead was presiding at the meeting for making the nomina- 
tion for the ensuing year, — when some one of the Standing Com- 
mittee nominated a gentleman as a member of the new Commit- 
tee; he was chosen, and his name written down by Mr. B. Sud- 
denly he enquired, who is this person ? Answer, a friend of 
Gen. McNiel. That is enough, exclaimed the alarmed Brodhead, 
and he immediately erased the name of the gentleman from the 
schedule. And all the others present, submitted to this impu- 
dent violation of their rights, as in duty bound. How beautifully 
democratic. By such management the Leaders appoint the offi- 
cers of the Society, and rein them afterwards at their pleasure. 

The 4th July is always celebrated under tlie auspices of the 
Washington Society; its President acting as President of the 



141 

day, and its Standing Committee as Vice-Presidents. And all of 
them are usually Custom House O^ficcra. Frequent attempts 
have been made to get up an independent celebration by the 
Jackson party, but have always failed. Now the object of all 
this management is, that tlie Statesman Leaders may have their 
backs scratched and their ribs tickled on these public occasions. 
And when an inilated account of the festival is published in the 
Statesman, they may loom up through this pestilent fog of "pub- 
lic sentiment" as great and important personages, the very 
" Dagons" of the party. The toasts given on such occasions by 
the Vice-Presidents and other Custom House Officers, especially 
those complimentary to the Leaders, are ivritten by them, and 
distributed among their retainers. Tiius, for instance, if a va- 
cancy in the President's Cabinet is expected to occur, and Mr, 
Henshaw is ambitious of filling the gap, some one of the "Vices'* 
will roar out somethins; like the following: — " Hon. David Hen- 
shaw, — "a nut of old Hickory;" — may he soon be elevated to a 
station adequate to his merits. The democracy of Nevv-England 
demand it." Now this is a fixir specimen, both of manner and 
form. The poor fellow who blows such a blast, don't perceive 
that a political adversary might pass his vinegar comments on his 
"sentiment,^' by saying that the nut was a niit-^«^/; that an 
" adequate elevation" wou\il be the <^a\\ows, and that if the de- 
mocracy of New-England knew what they were about, they would 
in very deed demand such an "elevation." 

Another instance. Mr. Simpson, conscious that he is acquiring 
a reputation abroad for political duplicity and intrigue, wishes to 
counteract the progress of such an opinion, and so he hands over 
to another "J'tcc" the following toast, or something very like it: — • 

"John K. Simpson, Esq. — The sterlin<T republican and honest man 
— who carries his heart in one hand and his conscience in the other." 
Music. — " Had 1 a heart for falsehood framed." 

Again, our friend Brodhead, knowing tliat his peculiar avoca- 
tion reduces him, in the vulgar estimation to nne-ninth of a man, 
and confident of his own profundity of intellect, manfullv re- 
solves to assert it, by causing the delivery of such a " sentiment" 
as the following : — 

" Daniel D. Brodhead, Esq. — In tjenius a Chatterton, in learning a 
Bentlcy, in wisdom a Solomon." Music. — " Four and twenty tailors 



142 

Then we have— "Nathaniel Greene, Esq.-— The modern Bayard, 
witho%it fear and without reproach^ " Andrew Dunlap, Esq — 
The American Burke."* "Charles G. Greene, Esq.— As an 
Orator, realizing and transcending the definition of Cicero." 
They have a Poet in the Statesman party, and on such an occasion 
he would probably favour the company with an extract from his 
admirable translation of Amadis de Gaul into English poetry, — 
like the following: — 

" Says she, Sir Knight, your presence of me rid, 
"Your words are false, — I never did'nt did! 
""With that her nails she dug into his face, 
"And, lo! he roar'd, and made a sad grimace. 
" Says she, you've got your gruel, you old wretch, 
"To which he answer'd,— Oh! you ugly b— h!" 

That my readers may be convinced that the above remarks are 
substantially correct, I will now copy from the Statesman ot the 
6th July, 1833, some of the toasts given at the celebration of 
American Independence by the Statesman party at East Boston. 
What a display of cringing democratic sycophancy! 

" By Amos Stevens. Charles G. Greene— The Editor of the Bos- 
ton Statesman needs no encouiium— his life and his services are his 
best [)raise— The respect and gratitude of the democratic party his just 
reward." 

[An error! 29,000 dollars was a much better reward.] 

" By J. C. Brodhead. Jonas L. Sibley, U. S. Marshal— an excel- 
ient officer and an excellent Republican— the more intimately he is 
known, the more highly will he be respected." 

[Mr. Brodhead was at this time aged, (I believe,) 19 years !] 

" By Levi R. Lincoln. John K. Simpson — the abuse of the oppo- 
sition but endear him to his friends — the choicest fruit is the oftenest 
clubbed." 

[" Clubs are trumps"— Levi !] 

" By J. Snow. N. Greene, Esq. — the best test of his worth is the 
universal respect in which he is held, as a citizen and a public officer, 
by all parties and by every class." 

[Nat gave glorious suppers; — iced champagne, and pickled 
oysters.] 



•Which Burke? Printer's Devil. 



143 

" By Mr. Stevens. Andrew Dunla[>, Esq., U. S. Attorney — the 
learned jurist, the eloquent advocate, the faithful public officer, the 
consistent politician." 

[Mr. Stevens is fully competent to estimate "a learned jurist!" ] 

"By H. W. Ridj^cway. David Ilenshaw — an efficiont advocate of 
democracy, and a disiinijuislied statesman — worthy and ca[)able of any 
station within the gift of the executive." 

[Mr. ^^'oodbury was appointed Secretary of the Treasunj, in 

spite of Mr. Ridge way.] 

Messrs. Brodhead, Lincoln, Snow, and Stevens, were Custom 
House Officers. These toasts were given on one occasion only, 
and by mere accident I happened to have the Statesman account 
of this celebration in my possession. If I coulil procure the files 
of tiiat paper for the last five years, I could select thousands of the 
same character. But I have done with this dis;i;usting subject. 



The Union of the Statesman parly with the Infidel and ^Inti- 

masonic parlies. 

I assert, as a fact beyond contradiction, that nineteen-tweritieths 
of the followers of Abner Kneeland were and are now Jackson- 
men, in full communion with the Statesman Leaders, and mem- 
bers of their party. I venture to declare, that if any person will 
procure the Boston Anti-Bank Memorial, he shall tind amonw its 
subscribers nearly every man who attends the Infidel or;:ie3 at 
the Federal-street Theatre. I have no doubt that the Infidel 
party constitutes at least one-third of the Jackson party of the 
City at this moment. Kneeland is an avowed Jacksonman, — and 
advocated his re-election in his newspaper; the leading men of 
his society are avowed Jacksonmen, and many of tliem the mo>,t 
active and influential members of thf party. And I farther aver, 
that the Van Buren party throughout the Union, embraces in its 
ranks the Infidels and sceptics of all the States. A fact which 
will be proved, whenever the office-holders' Convention assemble 
to nominate candidates for President and Vice-President. If 
Col. Johnson, the favorite of the Iiifitlel party, is not nominated by 
that Convention for Vice-President, he will be brought forward 
by his friends as a competitor for the Presidency. Who does 



144 

not remember that he was lon<; ago nominated for the Presidency 
by the Fanny Wright party of the City of New-York ? Kneelant! 
advertises in his paper the portraits of Jackson and Johnson for 
sale at his office, and has published a letter, (with remarks appli- 
cable to no other person but Col. Johnson,) which contained 
money, as well as felicitations on the result of his trial. The 
right arm of the Statesman party is the faction of Abner 
Kneeland. And undoubtedly this is one cause why that party 
has always been so contemptible for numbers in the City of Bos- 
ton. The descendants of the pilgrims are not yet radically cor- 
rupted ; some sparks of the ancient fires yet live in their ashes ; 
and the spires of numerous churches dedicated to the Most High, 
yet ward oil' the wrath of Heaven. Rut my country readers 
can have no idea how great is the influence of this apostle of 
Satan, nor how numerous are his disciples. The Federal-street 
Theatre, where he holds his Sunday meetings to scoff at the 
Bible, — to ridicule everything we hold sacred, and to sneer at the 
Deity, is usually crowded from top to bottom. It is said that 
£000 have been present at once ! And, monstrous to relate, a 
considerable proportion of the assemblage were females, — not 
the abandoned and reckless, but r.>spectable and educated females ! 
Before the promulgation of the Gospel of Christ, woman was 
either the slave of man or his toy. She had no rights. Chris- 

■J o 

tianity alone has elevated her to the station which she was created 
to fill, and which she so admirably adorns. And is it possible 
^*«^ that she can league with ruthless and brutal men, "whose con- 
sciences are seared as with a hot iron," to destroy the great char- 
ter of her liberty, and her power? 

The newspaper issued weekly by Mr. Kneeland, called the 
Investigator, contains matter which would shock even Hume and 
Voltaire. The old arguments against the truth of Christianity, 
by Celsus, Hobbs, Spinola, Hume, Gibbon, and the recluse of 
Ferney, are new vamped, but divested of all the graces of style 
and diction which could ever have made them palatable. And 
mingled with these, is a lava stream of blasphemy and obscenity 
which blasts the vision and gangrenes the very soul of the uncor- 
rupted reader. There is no book ever published, however infa- 
mous, but I had rather it should fall into the hands of my family 
than the Investigator. 



145 

And now my readerg, 1 am goia:; to itata facts; jou must 
draw your own inferences; I shall draw none. There are only 
two Jackson newspapers in Boston, viz: — the Morning Post, and 
the Investijrator. I do not mention the Statesman, because it is 
nnlv a reprint of tlie Post. The Post is edited by Mr. Charles 
G. Greene, and the Invesli;:!;ator by Mr. Kneeland. Well, Mr. 
Kneeland having published in his paper a most obscene and blas- 
phemous article in relation to the Saviour of the World, is in- 
dicted by the Grand Jury of Boston and put on his trial. Most 
extraordinarily, it so happens, that the other Jackson editor is on 
the Jurv to try him ! The District Attorney of the U. States, a 
leading Jacksonian, is his counsel. After a long investigation, a 
laborious defence, not wanting in ability, the Jury retire to con- 
sult on their verdict. Hour after hour elapses, and they do not 
return. At length, after a seclusion of many hours, tliey appear 
in Court, and tiie Foreman declares that they have not agreed 
and probably never shall agree. Eleven of the twelve Jurymen, 
are of the same opinion, viz: — that the defendant is guilty; but 
one is on the other side, and is immoveable. AVho is he ? Mr. 
Charles G. Greene, the Editor of the Morning Post. 

These are facts ; but I do not impugn the motives of Mr. 
Greene. Undoubtedly he thought himself right and conscientious. 

I have another story to tell to show the connexion between the 
Boston Jackson and Infidel parties. Just before the last State 
elections in Mass. in November, I sent up to the tavern of the 
beautiful village where I was then residing, to borrow a newspa- 
per. The messenger returned with the Investigator^ which was 
directed to a citizen of Lexington ; but the stageman neglecting 
to leave it there, brought it on to the village and gave it to the 
landlord of the tavern. It was probably the first and only paper 
of the kind, ever seen in the town. I opened it, and the very 
first article on which I fixed, was one which sent through my 
heart a thrill of delight and gratitude; delight, that I had it in 
my power to exert a material influence on the approaching elec- 
tion, and gratitude to Heaven that I was the instrument of that 
influence. 

The Jackson papers, the Post and Investigator, had long been 
constantly railing against the Jiristocracy, a bug-bear, which 
frightened many, because they knew not what it meant, but imag- 
19 



146 

ineci it some awful monster ! Tlie article alluded to explained 
the whole matter ; and I immediately sat down and wrote the 
foUowino; communication for the Boston Atlas, the effect of which 
throughout the State will not soon be forgotten. Never in my 
life, did I press my pillow with more soothing and grateful re- 
flections than on that night. God be praised ! that I have done 
something for the Whig cause, as an expiation of my former errors. 

TO ALL THINKING MEN! 

\x::j''Read — Reflect — and slay from the Polls if you dare .'.=£ni 



The WHIGS of Boston are perhaps not aware of all the questions 
to be determined by their votes on the 10th Nov. 

Within a few weeks past, a ncrt) position has been assumed by one 
branch of the JACKSON PARTY; and, it would seem, that the 
BELIEF AND WORSHIP OF THE DEITY is expected to be 
PUT DOWN bv the ultra radicals, as well as the other ancient in- 
stitutions of the Commonwealth. 

It is well known that there are only tn'o JACKSON EDITORS in 
Boston, viz: — he of the Post and Statesman and Mr. ABNER 
KNEELAND of the INVESTIGATOR. Both these gentlemen are 
inveterate opposers of the " ARISTOCRACY"— which includes all 
men richer than themselves. •' Blanks and Twine," however, seenii 
to be in a fair way to cast his democratic skin; for $24,000 in two 
years is a powerful solvent of stern republicanism. His worthy co- 
adjutor has been less fortunate in his political speculations. 

This reverend martyr in the cause of Satan was recently saved from 
conviction, on a charge of blasphemy, by the agency of his brother 
Jacksonian. They are the Pierre and Jaffier of the party. Both 
claim to be oriffinal, unaccommodating, wool-dved democracts, and both 
with equal rancor, denounce "THE ARISTOCRACY OF BOS- 
TON." 

Now the writer, with many other working men of the city, has been 
extremely puzzled in the attempt to discover what is meant by the 
" ARISTOCRACY" — that formidable and detested enemy of our re- 
publican institutions, — so strenuously oi)posed in the Post and the In- 
vestigator. The mystery has at last been solved, through the kindness 
Mr. Kneeland, who has lately condescended to give us a definition 
" of the terms" Aristocracy and Democracy. 

The following extracts are from the Investigator of Oct. 21th. 

IC?" " As every man is not acquainted with the definition of the terms 
ARISTOCRACY and DEMOCRACY, I take the liberty of giving 
such of your readers as are deficient in that knowledge a brief sketch 
of those terms in juxta-position." 

"ARISTOCRACY is a term which designates a party which up- 
holds the BELIEF OF A SPIRITUAL BEING WHOM THEY 
CALL GOD. The foundation of all this nonsense is written in a 
Book by supernatural inspiration, which they call a revelation from 



117 

this imaginary [.ersoiiaije. DEMOCRACY is n lerin wiiicli desiff- 
iiates a jiarty which upholds the belief of u JJATERIAL BEING 
whom they call GOD." 

" In order that your readers should keep their eyes on those two 
great orders of the moral world and be able to trace tiiese parties, in 
KF)ite of the names wliich thcv assume, thev will find that the term 
WHIGS is only another name"for the AIIISTOCIIACV; and that the 
term TORIES is another name for DEMOCRACY. To sum up tho 
sul)stance of both jiarties bv condensation in as few words as 1 can 
compress them, ARISTOCRACY, WHIGS and spiritual being are 
terms which are synonymous with FALSEHOOD. And DEMO- 
CRAC\, TORIES, and (as they use the term) material being, the 
ternis which are synonymous with" TRUTH." 

" There are many Marfvrs that are willing to fall in such a glorious 
cause WHO HAVE NEVER BENT THEIR KNEE TO AN IM- 
AGINARY SPIRITUAL BEING WHICH THE ARISTOCRACY 
SUPPORT, AND WHO NEVER WILL." 

Are the SONS OF THE PILGRIMS prepared to surrender the 
destmies of this glorious Commonwealth into the hands of INFIDELS 
and BLASPHEMERS.' Shall this hallowed soil be polluted by the 
Kway of ATHEISM.? Awake, CHRISTIANS OF ALL SECTS!— 
AWAKE, AND TO THE POLLS, EVERY MAN WHO BE- 
LIEVES IN GOD— WHO HOPES FOR IMMORTALn%— 
WHO TRUSTS IN THE SAVIOUR OF THE WORLD. 

JUSTUS. 

I had previously written for tliat paper (the Atlas,) the article, 
published 27lh Oct. 1834, entitled " The next object of attack," 
fchowing, by extracts from the Globe, that the President meditat- 
ed an assault on the Judiciary of l)ie U. States. This communi- 
cation, althougli having a signature, the talented editor of that 
paper did me tlie honor to publish as an editorial. 

We will now look to tlie lelt arm of the Statesman party, viz : 
— tlie Anti-masonic paity in Boston. As early as 1833, I was 
satisfied that a conspiracy was on foot to sell tlie Anti-masonic 
party of tie State to the Statesman party. This conspiracy did 
not extend beyond the City until the last election, when the con- 
spirators. Anti-masons and Jacksonmen, invaded the several 
counties of the State, mustered Anti-masonic Conventions, and 
nominated Senatorial tickets of " half and half" of both parties. 

They expected to dupe the honest yeomanry of the coutitrv, 

who were opposed to Masonry from principle, but were genuine 
Whigs at heart; and to force or seduce them to support ./Vrtsoju'c 
Jacksonmen, by the proffer of half of a ticket containing their 
own friends. Tricks in politics may do in town, but they will 
not go in the country. Our farmers are ''sharp men,"' keen- 



148 

sighted, — exceedingly inquisitive and suspicious, and abhor anj at- 
tempt to manage them, or to interfere with their freedom of ac- 
tion and opinion. Masonic Case of Lowell, and Anti-masonic 
Atwill of Concord, could not therefore make up a pill which the 
farmers of Middlesex would swallow. And they were not only 
signally defeated in the election, but have called down upon their 
heads the execrations of all paties. This movement was only a 
ramification of the conspiracy to betray the Anti-masons to the 
Jackson party, which had long been concocting at Boston. While 
I was in the Custom House in 1833, some of the superior officers 
were in the daily habit of visiting the Advocate Office, and they 
were ^rch JIasons. It was the common talk among us, that the 
Advocate would eventually go for Van Buren, and that it was 
politic to encourage it. In the City elections, unless the Anti 
party had a ticket, many of them voted with the Statesman party. 
And when the Hon. Samuel Lathrop, the Anti-masonic candidate 
for Governor, published his letter to the Anti-masons, containing 
a "confession of faith," and also several severe cuts at General 
Jackson, Mr. C. G. Greene, although one of the President's pro- 
teges, printed at the request of the Advocate editor 10,000 
copies of the said letter ! I state these facts that the people 
may know when and where the conspiracy against them com- 
menced / they have seen enough recently to be convinced that it 
actually existed. And they have most effectually arrested it. 
The Advocate will probably be bought up by the Statesman party 
within a few months, and go for Van Buren and Johnson, both I 
believe Freemasons. I learned the disposition of the Editor of 
that paper many years ago ; his destiny is, to " gnaiv a jile" 
through life. 

I shall dismiss this subject; for I believe my readers are satis- 
fied, that Infidelity and Anti-masonry are the two drudge horses, 
which draw the mud-cart of the Statesman party whenever they 
ride out on their political excursions. 

I could introduce many more striking illustrations of the 
" Beauties of Jacksonism," but my advisers admonish me that I 
am growing too voluminous, and therefore, kind reader, let ma 
introduce you to another chapter. 



CHAPTER XII. 

Removal of the Deposites. 

" Prince Henry. — I am good friends with my father. and may do anything." 

" Falstaff. — Rob me tiie exclieijuer the lirst thing tliou doest, and do it 
with unwashed hands too." — Sliakspcare. 



General Jackson laid violent hands on the people's money, 
and transferred it into the custody of his own officers, removable 
at his pleasure. By this act, he made ilie first breach in the 
Constitution, and forever forfeited his character as a republican 
and a patriot. All his previous splendid achivements, cannot 
save him from the execrations of posterity, when it dates the de- 
cline of the Confederacy, its dissolution, and the triumphs nf 
anarchy from this insane transaction. It drew after it all his 
other most ruinous and startling assaults on the regular action of 
the Government; his assault on the Senate, a power equal and 
co-ordinate with his own ; his assault on the Supreme Judiciary, 
a power superior, in some particulars, to any other under the 
Constitution. One false step led him onward in the downward 
path of personal degration and national ruin. The ne.xt election 
will determine whether the Constitution shall be restored, or 
whether the people consent to live under a despotism. A chief 
magistrate, no matter by what title he is called, who holds both 
the purse and the sword, is a despot, and his government is, or 
will be a despotism. Revolutions are not necessarily accom- 
plished by violence and carnage. A Pharsalia is not always to 
be fought to change a nation's Government. As complete a re- 
volution has been perfected by Louis Philip's sagacious admin- 
istration, as was conquered by the patriots in the "three days" 
conflict which raised him to the throne. He is as absolute a King 
as the miscreant who was expelled. Men are too prone to look 
at forms and not at facts. While the form of government i» 
preserved, they conclude that its essence is unchanged. But no 



150 

usurper of the liberties of the people ever yet was fojl enough to 
ehanee at once the forms of their government. Tiberius had his 
Senate and Napoleon his Senate and Legislative Assembly. We 
are not only " in the midst of a revolution," as Mr. Clay most 
justly declared, but it is nearly accomplished, by the consent of 
the people, who seem to be so indifterent to their liberties, or so 
corrupted, that they voluntarily submit themselves to slavery. 
And such has been the cause of the destruction of every free 
government that ever existed : the people have consented, and 
liave voluntarily " bowed their supple necks beneath the feet" of 
their oppressors. The flict, that the public treasure has been 
seized by the President without exciting any great and perma- 
nent commotion among the people, fills all reflecting minds with 
amazement and consternation. There is not a patriot in the U. 
States, whose soul does not wither at the thought. If there is 
any truth in Phrenology, the organ of " Destructiveness" in Gen. 
Jackson must be prodigiously developed. To destroy^ has been 
the constant labour of his life. Recollect his many private broils 
of the most sanguinary character. The Creek and Seminole 
war, so divested of ail humanity, and distinguished for massacres 
rather than battles. The crowning glories of New-Orleans, when 
the earth was saturated with human blood. And then consider 
his Administration of the Government. He has originated 
nothing ; he has neither proposed, nor established any new thing 
for the interest and happiness of the people. His business has 
been to destroy existing institutions, not to found new ones. He 
has destroyed the system of internal improvements, so beneficial 
to new States in the West ; — he has destroyed the United States 
Bank; — has attempted and is now striving to destroy the Senate; 
— has meditated the destruction of the Supreme Court, — and in 
his thirst for destruction is forcing the country into a war with 
our ancient ally and friend, the French nation. Now it is one of 
the easiest things in the world for a husbandman on entering 
upon a new farm, to overturn the stone walls, prostrate the fen- 
ces, cut down tiie forests, root up the fruit trees, and set fire^ to 
his barns and hay-stacks; but to repair, build up, restore and im- 
prove, is another and much more diflicult business. And the 
jirst is the only merit to which the President is entitled. He has 
repaired, built up, restored, improved, originated, nothing, — but 



151 

armed with the destructive itistruinents of power lie has ovim- 
tunied, cut down, and rooted up every tiling in the institulions 
of the country which fell in his way as he has hurried throuj^h 
his term of office. This distinction has never bcL'n suQiciently 
considered by those wlio have grown hoarst; in shouting his 
praises. 

General Jackson is not even entitled to the merit of havinir 
originated the project for seizing the public treasure. The glory 
of that achievement belongs to one of his humble officers^ who 
" on his own responsibilitif" laid hands on a great portion of the 
public money, and transferred it to the vaults of a Bank in which 
he was a large stock-holder, nearly two years before the Presi- 
dent made his general sweep of all the people's casii — "at one 
fell swoop." And I never had a doubt, but that this " oflicer" 
was the projector and adviser of that daring and despotic measure. 
Mr. Collector Henshaw was that "humble officer," — humble in 
station I mean, but a "Mount Athos carved to ti,e form of man" 
if one could only borrow his own optics through which to take a 
view of his dimensions. 

Have the merchants of Boston forgotten, tliat the Collector 
directed the Bond Clerk to deposit for collection, their Bonds 
(securing the payment of duties.) in the Commonwealth Bank, 
of which the wily Simpson was President, and not in the U. S. 
Branch Bank at Boston, where thev lia<i previously been deoosit- 
ed, and where by law they ought to have been deposited ? He 
did that thing, and continued to do it, for (I think,) at least three 

months. I have said that he did it "on his own resposibility," 

and my reasons for so saying are the following: — Neither the 
President nor Mr. Taney ever pretendi-d, that thev had a ri'dit to 
remove the deposits from the custody ;;f the U. S. Bank, without 
assigning to Congress their reasons In the act. Th6 law is too 
plain and palpable to be evaded in this particular. But when the 
Boston Collector removed the depo>it3 from the Branch Bank 
and transferred them to his own Bank, where they were kept at 
least three months, did Mr. Ingham, then Secretary of the Treas- 
ury, ever report the fact to Congress? I never heard of any 
report. And I have no doubt, that the moment he heard of the 
transaction he ordeied them instantly to be restored^ and that 
the removal was effected without any order from him, and without 
even his knowled^re. 



152 

The order to restore, was a most mortifying circumstance to 
Mr. Collector, who had been in the habit of saying " to one man 
go, and he goeth, and to another come, and he cometh." From 
that moment he vowed an implacable vengeance against the 
U. S. Bank. The order of the Secretary was not only humilia- 
ting to his pride, but extremely annoying and offensive in other 
particulars. It arrested a very pretty profit to the Common- 
wealth Bank, and a very advantageous influence which the pos- 
session of the Bonds secured. But the most baneful considera- 
tion was, that the act of removal not having been sanctioned by 
the Secretary of the Treasury, he became personally liable to 
the Bank of the U. States for the interest of the public money 
during the time he unlawfully sequestrated it, amounting proba- 
bly to 14,000 dollars ! Now these things were sufficient to stir 
up the wrath of the mildest of men, but on the inflamable tem- 
perament of the Collector they operated like sand paper on a 
Lucifer match. 

The first consequence of the fury of his indignation was the 
publication of a pamphlet against the U. States Bank. Col. 
Benton had, a short time before, delivered a speech against the 
Bank, in which he discharged all the venom he had been con- 
cocting through the previous summer. Every argument which 
could be raised against that institution was contained in the la- 
borious Colonel's oration. Mr. Henshaw entered this arsenal of 
anti-bank arguments, and selecting his weapons, he proceeded to 
polish a gun, grind a sword, and clean out a pistol, and in this 
wav got up a very creditable pamphlet. His next movement was 
a project for a new JVational Bank^ of 50 instead of 35 millions ; 
and as money was to be made by it, the capitalists of Boston 
eagerly subscribed his petition to Congress for its institution. 
Me was to have been its President. This petition was actually 
presented for the consideration of Congress. But by this time, 
the President, who, in the first instance, had proposed a National, 
or rather an Executive Bank, as a substitute for the present 
Bank, embracing all its defects and discarding all its benefits, 
had been driven by the clamors of the miserable horde which 

infested his councils, into the notion that all Banks ought to be 
<lestroyed, and he was encouraged in this opinion by his *' organ 

of destructiveness." He had adopted the gold and silver scheme ; 



153 

at which, I envv the next generation for the laiij^h they will en« 
joy. Not a t'arniiT of Massachusetts has ever yet seen one of 
the gold coins, unless as a curiosity. The project is a total 
failure. It never can succeed in a commercial State. Wirnt 
merchant or trader will load a w;)gon with specie to pay his debts 
or purcliase his stock, whon lie can put the whole sum required 
for such a purpose into his breeches pocket, in bank bills, which 
are equivalent to goUl and silver, whenever it is demanded ? If 
ever a Presitlent knocked his head against a post, and continued 
in spite of the remonstrances even of his enemies, who pitied the 
agonies he suH'ered. to knock his head daily against the same ob- 
stinate antagonist, it is the redoubtable General Jackson. Some 
vears ago, one of my neighbors, a remarkably absent and hurried 
man, sullered similar distress to the President's, His house 
stood at the head of an avenue, and one of his neighbours, on 
the sUIc, put up a row of posts in front of his house. 1 Isave 
repeatedly seen my good triend, (the absent and hurried man.) 
rush from his front iloor in the morning, and plump himself on 
the first post in the row ; hug iiis injured stomach a moment, and 
dash upon the seco?zf/; curse his stars, and encounter the third i 
marvel at such unaccountable impediments, and roll over the 
fourth; damn all posts to the infernals, and knock the wind out 
of his body on the ^j7/i. General Jackson is trying the same 
curious experiment. May he survive it I 

^Vhile the project of the 50 millions Bank was depending, I 
had occ ision to enter the Collector's room on official business, 
and to my surprise found him tranquil and conversable. lie was 
alone and particularly gracious. He said to me, (after the olticial 
business was transacted.) " what do you think of the U. S. Hank ?** 
I replied, let it go down ; it asserts such monstrous powers, that 
every republican must desire its destruction. But, said 1, you 
with all your hostility to the present Bank seem disposed to get 
up another. •' Yes," he answered, — " we cannot do without 
some kind of a National Bank ; and if the democratic party 
succeed in destroying the present Bank and in instituting a Gov. 
ernment Bank on new principles, (he approved of the President's 
Bank.) we shall manage it and direct it to the support of our 
principles and party." 6jr, said I, I am opposed to any ai)d 
every Bank of the U. States, " Well," he replied, " perhap* 
SO 



154 

on reflection, you may discern what great advantages the 50 mil- 
lion Bank offers to our friends of the Jackson party. Think 
of it." 

I did think of it, and concluded that the re-charter of the 
present U. S. Bank was preferable to the establishment of a po- 
litical Bank, controuled by Van Buren and his partisans. 

Foiled in this attempt to substitute a 50, or a 35 million Bank, 
the Collector, whose wrath is never appeased but by success, de- 
termined to " bide his time." That time came when the Presi- 
dent arrived in Boston. 

I never could approach the President while he remained at the 
Tremont House, without finding the Leaders of the Statesman 
party constantly on ^uarrf; and no Jacksonman could possibly 
have an interview with him, without one of them was present in 
the room. I made several attempts to pay my respects, and de- 
signed to inform him of the rascally transactions of some of his 
pretended friends, but never looked into the door of the room 
where he received his visiters without perceiving one of the 
Statesman Leaders doing "guard duty." When the old gentle- 
man was taken sick, those of that party who hatl wives, turned 
thein in upon him, and they being instructed, were as watchful 
and as sharp-eared as their husbands. No man could speak a 
moment with the President except in the presence of an interest- 
ed and vigilant witness. 

It is remembered, that while at Boston, the President's life was 
considered in jeopardy. At this moment the project for the re- 
moval of the deposits from the U. S. Bank was proposed ! The 
letter to this effect, to Mr. Duane, (then Secretary of the Treas- 
ury,") is dated on the very day when the President was incapable 
of any business, and was probably written by Van Buren, at the 
suo-o-estion of Mr. Henshaw ! It is doubtful if the imbecile and 
afflicted old man knew at the time what he did sign. But as his 
rule is never to retract, on regaining his strength and sanity, he 
found himself committed to a certain course of policy which his 
better judgment condemned. He perceived the alternatives pre- 
sented, viz : — to acknowledge an error, or to persist in it ; and 
^' Andrew Jackson never commits an error." And so our fiery 
friend the Collector, had the glory of being the author of the 
removal of the deposits, and was then enabled to gratify his 
gpleen against the U. S. Bank. 



155 

Tlic " deposits" were finally removed from the place where 
Congress had by an immense majority resolved they were per- 
fectly safe, viz: — the vaults of the U. States Bank, but where 
were they carried to ? I remember, that when expressing my 
alarm and disapprobation of the measure of removal to the intel- 
lectual and refined Deputy Collector of Boston, he exclaimed, 
" we will have a law authorizing the Collector to keep the public 
money in tlie Custom House, it shall be paid down on this coun- 
ter, rather than be restored to the U. S. Bank." Now the three 
or four millions of public revenue collected at Boston, were by 
the wisdom or cunning of the President's counsellors actually 
transferred to the custody of his own public officers, every one of 
whom he could remove from office at his pleasure. Or, I might 
with propriety say, that Mr. Henshaw the Collector was appoint- 
ed keeper of this trifling sum of some millions of dollars! The 
Commonwealth Bank, in wliich he was a large stockholder, was 
selected as one of the '' pets" to receive the deposits and guard 
the public treasure. Let us see, who at the time, constituted its 
Board of Directors. Here they are. John K. Simpson., Pension 
Agent, and intended successor to the Collectorship. Mams 
Baib'ii., Deputy Collector. Jindreic Dunlap, District Attorney. 
JuJin Ilenshaic, brother of David Henshaw, the Collector. Samuel 
S. Lewis, Commissioner of the U. States on claims of insolvent 
debtors, and brotherin-law of the Collector. S. S. Carruth, 
connected with the Collector by marriage. Charles Ilood^ 
Cashier, chosen by the rest, and of course entirely under their 
influence. The whole Board consists of eleven., and here are 
seven of them, a decided majority. At this time., the Board is 
equally under the control of the Collector and the U. States 
Officers ! 

Now is it not manifest, that in this case, the public money is 
virtually in the hands of the President of the U. States ? Does 
any man believe that if he required of the Commonwealth Bank 
a half or whole million of dollars, the Directors would not in- 
stantly " hand over ?" AVhy, their "bread and butter" would 
depend upon their acquiescence in the demand. If they refused, 
(they are at the President's mercy) every man of them could be 
discharged, instanter, from his public office, and the Bank be de- 
prived of the advantage resulting from the use of several millions 



156 

lor which no interest is demanded. An Immense advantage ! If 
any of my readers are sceptical on this subject, I refer them to a 
case which has actually happened. When Mr. Barry, the unfor- 
tunate Post-master General, found himself involved in embar- 
rassments which required vast sums to relieve, he applied to the 
Commonwealth Bank for a loan of fiftij thousand dollars. Mr. 
Barry was considered in Boston the friend of Col. Johnson as 
Jackson's successor, and not of Van Buren. The Statesman 
Leaders had not been re-nominated by the President to the 
Senate, and it was feared that Barry, (as a member of the Cabi- 
net,) and Secretary Cass, and Secretary M'Lane, might possibly 
oppose their re-nomination. It was therefore highly important to 
secure Barry's influence in the Cabinet, and the 50 thousand was 
readily loaned with the persuasion that the object would thus be 
accoiDplished. The loan was illegal, and never can be recovered 
by legal process. But as the Leaders procured their re-appoint- 
ments to office, I presume that even the loss of the 50 thousand 
will be considered, on the whole, a profitable bargain. And in 
the same manner the President of the U. States, or the Secretary 
of the Treasury, can abstract every farthing of the millions of 
public money in the custody of these dependent, mercenary, and 
obsequious public servants! 

This is a pleasant and gratifying view of our national affairs ! 
But the end is not yet. I humbly trust that the canker of cor- 
ruption may eat deep and dea<ily, so that when the people feel 
its virulence, a mighty effcirt may be made to escape from the 
contagion. Give us commotion rather than indifference. The 
Republic is safe, if the people are only watchful, or alarmed, or 
oppressed. But indifference, the opiate of despotism, fixes the 
destinies of this country. Our sleep, like the sleep of the chilled 
traveller, is death; death to freedom. We are too prosperous, 
and in the ardor of money making, forget or neglect our most 
imperative public duties. While we fill our purses, and promise 
ourselves years of peace and plenty to come, a consumption has 
seized upon the " body politic" — rapid in its progress, fatal in 
its termination. " Awake, arouse, or be forever fallen !" 



CHAPTER XIII. 



Baite and Antidote. 



" The pale-fac'd mooa looks bloody on tlie earlh, 
" And lean look'd prophets wliisper (earlul cliange; 
" Rich men look sad, and rulTians dance and leap — 
" The one, in fear to lose what they enjoy, 
" The other, to enjoy by rage and war." — Shafcspeare. 



The times are out of joint. The people seem to have " eaten 
of the in*ane root," or to be delivered over by Heaven to tlicir 
own delusions, that they should believe a lie. Old principles of 
eternal truth, established by the wisdom of ages, are now pro- 
claimed, by unfledged politicians hardly out of faction's nest, as 
the relics of barbarous times, — the monstrous errors of an ase 
of darkness. The right of property is crumbling to pieces ; 
liberty is not believed to be founded on law and order; an inde- 
pendent judiciary is considered a national evil ; the patriots who 
framed the Constitution, are estimated by beardless statesmen 
who are not yet old enough t(» have got rid of the smell of bread 
and butter, as infinitely inferior in learning and talent to them- 
selves ; and even the Christian religion, which fortunately sur- 
vived the assaults of Hume and Voltaire, it is now expected by 
many will knock under to Abner Knueland. Some of our 
^'■veteran youth" who have ciphered as far as the "rule of 
tlnee," pronounce i^^ir Isaac Newton "small change;'" others, 
who have attempted a " farce," doubt the validity of Shakspeare's 
claim to the atimiration of mankind ; and others who have written 
odes to butterflies and musquetoes, questioi: the reputation of 
Pope, as a poet ! 

The strange theories continually started in our legislative as- 
semblies by juvenile pretension or hoary stupidity, which thirty 
years ago would have been hooted at and refused a hearing, are 
now received and cherished as the golden eggs of some political 
goose. All things seem to 6c ni a hurry; as if there was a 



158 

universal rusli to undo all which infinite toil, cost, and bloodshed 
had perfected, and to plunge madlj into the gulf of national 
destruction. The political cauldron is in furious ebullition ; of 
course the scum rises to the surface, and it has " most sweet 
voices!" The old pickle remains at the bottom, in sullen 
taciturnity. 

And a base cupidity, a sordid love of money, has superseded 
the spirit of liberty. If our wise men and "-lean look'd prophets" 
declare that the Constitution has been violated and that our lib- 
erties are in peril, the answer is, "have we not enough to eat 
and to drink ? Is not the country prosperous? Look at the 
revenue ! Is not labour in demand ? Are we not getting rich ?" 
How would such language have been listened to in '76 ? 

That the people of tiie U. States would in process of time be- 
come corrupted, like the people of every other government that 
ever existed ; that they could not escape the fate of every thing 
human, no man in his senses ever doubted. But who ever an- 
ticipated the rapid and fatal decline of public virtue and inde- 
pendence which has sei/.ed upon us, since in 1828 Gen. Jackson 
distributed the public offices to his hungry partisans, and estab- 
lished the rule that t';ey were the "-rewards of victory? A 
hundred New-Urleans achievements would not amount to the 
dust of the balance as an equivalent for the irreparable evils he 
has brought upon his country. We shall date our national degra- 
dation from the 4th March, 1829 ! 

Even our own staid and sober State of Massachusetts, " the 
land of the Pilgrim,'' has shown a disposition to set law and order 
at defiance ; to violate tlie rights of private property, and to for- 
get that our Constitution establishes unlimited religious freedom. 
Never, in the history of this, or of any other enlightened State, 
was there committed an act so base, so cowardly, and so wicked, 
as the {lestruction of the Catholic Convent at Charlestown. 
Sixty women aud children driven from their domicils, at mid- 
night, by one or two hundred ruffians, and who, while surrounded 
by at least two thousand respectable citizens, were suS'ered to 
apply the torch and involve this private property in a general 
conflagration ! no public officer attempting to arrest the in- 
famous transaction, or apparently conscious of the eternal dis- 
grace inflicting on his town and State ! And when judicial trials 



159 

for the discovery of the perpetrators were had, the only victim, 
a poor, unhappy, thoughtless boy, of sixteen t/ears old, the scape- 
goat of the gang of bearded and cunning villains! If, as was 
said by a brother of the patriot Warren in an oration to the peo- 
ple of Charlestown delivered not long after his apotheosis on 
Bunker Hill, " the voice of your Feathers' blood cries to you from 
the ground, — my sons, scorn to be slaves." That voice will never 
hereafter cease to cry, — "shame and dishonor sit on thy fame 
ever." 

The whole Union is about to be perplexed and convulsed bv 
evils, which, may a kind Providence mitigate "in mercy." As I 
belong to no party, (as a mere partisan,) and as sometimes a look- 
er on sees the game more clearly than the players, I trust, that 
without the imputation of vanity, I may be permitted to sketch 
some of my views of the perils of the times. A? I no more pin 
my political faith on the sleeve of man, but go entirely for prin- 
ciples, so I shall speak of men who are prominent candidates for 
the government of the Confederacy, without "fear, favor, aSec- 
tion, or hope of reward" 

And in connection with the evils to be apprehended, I will 
venture to su<>:ji;est the antidotes. 

It is manifest to every reflecting and intelligent citizen, that 
the rt'cent acts of the President are rapidly changing, if they 
have not already changed the forms of our Government. If we 
are destined to "^o on from the position he has assumed, as to the 
President's prerogative, for another Presidential term, our Gov- 
ernment will be essentially a monarchy; stronger than that of 
France or England, and this original Confederacy will be a Con- 
solidated Government. The poweis claimed and exercised by 
Gen. Jackson are, the right to "vet(»" all laws which he does not 
like ; the power to remove from office every public officer in the 
U. States, from the Secretary of the Treasury to the humblest 
Post-master; the power to appoint a partisan to office after his 
nomination has been rejected by the Senate; the power to make 
neic offices in order to fill them bv his partisans ; the power to 
seize and keep in his own, or his officers' hands, (removeable at 
his pleasure,) all the public treasure of the U. States; the power 
to have the Senators instructed in their duties, by legislatures 
who did not choose them ; the power to select from Congress 



160 

pliant members, and, as a reward for their devotedness, to ap- 
point them to important offices ; the power to control the de- 
cisions of the Supreme Court of the U. States, and finally the 
power to construe the Constitution "as he understands it!" 
These are the powers of an absolute monarch. I have not enu- 
merated all of the President's claims, but enough, in all con- 
science ! The most dangerous of all these monstrous assump- 
tions of power, are the right to the custody of the public purse ; 
the right to have the Senators instructed, and the right to con- 
strue the Constitution as he, or Amos Kendall understands 
it. I have shown in another Chapter, that in Boston, the Presi- 
dent had transferred the public revenue into the keeping of his 
own '' understrappers," who would crawl on their hands and knees 
to obey him, rather than forfeit their appointments. In this case, 
therefore, he can at any moment command the millions in their 
custody! I presume that the same state of affairs exists in all 
the *' pet Banks." The whole public treasure is at his disposal. 
William 4th of Great Britain, nor Louis Phillipe, King of the 
French, possesses any such a power! But we republicans' consent 
to it! 

The right to have the Senators instructed I Why, the very 
election of the Senator for six years, was designed by the wise 
framers of the Government under which we have so wonderfully 
prospered, to lift the Senate beyond the reach of popular excite- 
ment, that in the very tumult of such an event, one branch of 
the Government misht be cool and deliberate in its decisions. 
Instruct a Senator! A State might with equal propriety instruct 
the Supreme Court in relation to a trial in which its interests were 
concerned ! The wisdom of our fathers has been tested in the 
events of the last two years. The Senate have " saved the State," 
if it is eventually saved. I deeply regret that one Whig ever 
was found who misconstrued the Great Charter of our liberties. 

The right to construe the Constitution as he understands it, is 
the most impudent proposition ever submitted to the American 
people. Does not the old man know that the decisions of the 
Supreme Court are the Constitution, and that he and all other 
citizens are bound by these decisions ? The Constitution would 
be made to mean anything and everything under the supervisions 
of Kendall, Hill, and their associates. 



161 

What is the aiitiiiote— the remeily, for these sudden and ruth- 
less encroachment:* uii the Constitution I 1 confess, I can see, 
and have never hearil of but uuc^ viz; — NuUilication. U the 
Chief of the Confederacy rushes headlong into consolidation and 
despotism, there is but one peaceful remedy, viz: — ihut the sev- 
eral States, formini; the Confederacy, should recoil on their own 
State Governments, for security, and the preservation of the peo- 
ple's liberties ; as Massachusetts did during the last war. 1 am 
not about to argue this question, — but confess n«yself a convert 
to the South-Carolina doctrines, in a modified sense. If any 
country ever produced great men and sincere patriots, Calhoun, 
Hayne, M'DuHie and Hamilton are entitled to that honor. These 
are the men whose statues will fill the niches of history. 

Ever since the nomination of Judge White, I have believed 
that the friends of Gen. Jackson intended to run him for a " third 
term,'' and that all the subsequent extraordinary measures and 
transactions emanated from that design. The War with France, 
the attempted assassination, and the conspiracy against an hon- 
orable Senator. There is something of impertinence in the State 
of Tennessee nominatio"; a second candidate for the Presidency ; 
and a gentleman, as I conceive, of so ordinary abilities that there 
is not a village in New-England which does not contain his equal. 
But this is a Van Buren trick, of which the Judge is wholly ig- 
norant. When the Convention of the 40,000 office-holders is 
assembled, then, if Van Buren considers his chance of succeed- 
ing hopeless, his creatures will begin to lament the divisions in 
the democratic party. The necessity of Union in the approach- 
ing election, will be exhibited in glowing colours; and the /;reat 
War Chief, will be again nominated, "-as the saviour of the 
democratic party" and last hope of the country. And as his 
ruje is •' never to solicit or decline office," of course he will, in 
defiance of all former precedent, gratefully accept the nomina- 
tion ! In which case, his old friend and " crony," the Judge, will 
instantly relinquish his claims, and Van Buren be again raised, 
the bob of the political kite, as Vice-President under the ''Old 

Hero." 

But supposing the war fever abates, and Jackson determines 
on retirement, I do not anticipate much of a " fight" between 
White and the Magician.' Admitting the Judge is seriously d«- 

21 



162 

tennined to be a candidate, and that his friends in the South are 
resolute in his support, the Magician's chances are quadruple 
his own. If the election took place to-day, Van would carry 
New-Hampshire, Maine, New-York, New-Jersey, Pennsylvania, 
Ohio, Virginia, North-Carolina, Georgia, Illinois and Louisiana 
certainly, antl probably several other States, but these are quite 
sufficient. It is both amusing and painful to witness the infatua- 
tion of some of tlie Whig editors, who like the Bourbons " forget 
nothing and learn nothing;" on whom woeful experience pro- 
duces no benefit; who, with the events of '28 and '32, fresh in 
their memories yet continue, like roasting oysters, to sing while 
their houses are burning. Because Judge White has been nomi- 
nated by the Legislature of Alabama, and by the Representatives 
of his own State, and Daniel Webster has been nominated bv 
Massachusetts, they flatter themselves that the Magician "is dis- 
jmsed of,^' and that his hopes are desperate ! He knows better, 
and laughs in his sleeve at such leaden-headed stupidity. What 
vast sums of money have been lost in bets, in 1828 — 1832, and on 
the recent Maine, New-York and New-Jersey elections, by the 
indulgence and the publication of the same insane folly and 
childish ignorance by leading Whig Editors ? The Magician is 
not so easily put down ! In the next Congress, at least 20 votes 
will be added to his present majority in the House of Rep- 
resentatives, and it is but too probable that he will secure a ma- 
jority in the Senate. And yet many of the Whig papers, are 
continually shouting " lo triumphe," and deceiving the people 
with the monstrous assertion, that Van Buren ^'cannot be Presi- 
dent P^ It would be well if they took lessons of their opponents 
in political wisdom. They are infinitely better acquainted with 
the state of public opinion than most of the pampered City 
Editors of the Whig newspapers. 

No man can feel a stronger admiration and reverence for the 
talents and virtue of Mr. Webster than the writer; not recently 
got up, but of long standing. WHille I was one of the President's 
most zealous partisans, I repeatedly showed, that the brighest 
spirit of the country, her greatest orator, soundest statesman, and 
most able defender of the Constitution, could not be assailed in 
our own journals without calling forth a rebuke from some of 
the party, who honored excellence, and were proud of the glory 



163 

of the State. In 1832, (I tliiiik.) I read in tlie Boston Statesman 
a para^rapli as lollows: — "jJtnouii; the cattle^ at the late show in 
Brighton, were the llun. Jhn'ul U'ehsti'r^ &c." And I instantly 
wrote a comniunicaliun fur the Cciitincl, in whicli I prayed the 
public not to believe, that every Jacksonnian consented to such 
low and dishonorable '' blackguardism," or did not acknowledge 
Mr. W's. illustrious public services, and distinguished ability. 
And at the Faneuil Hall dinner in 1833, I rose in the midst of 
Jacksonnien and made the following remarks and toast. It was 
soon after the appearance of the President's Proclamation, and 
Mr. Webster's noble and eloquent defence of it. 1 was wrong 
in most of my sentiments, — but no matter, the illusion is over! 

Mr. President, — I am a Custom House Officer, and therefore, nni 
li.ible to the siisiiicioii tiiat [ ilare not express an independent opinion. 
I know, Sir, tliiil tills idea is dilii;r!iitly propagated i)y certain persons, 
and that it is too ffenerally believed by our citizens. Events in this 
City, have tended lu confirm it ; fur we have seen those, who have 
manifested an independent sjiirit, suddenly driven from their employ- 
ments; not with disgrace, because it is iiripossiblc for any despotism 
to disgrace an upright man, but with insolent malevulence. 

Now, Sir, I maintain, that such proceedings are in direct opposition 
to the sentiments and to the practice of our illustrious President, who, 
above all men, nut only exercises the right of private judgment him- 
self, l)ut is the great p:itron of the same right in all other men. Be- 
cause, as a real republican, it is a vital principle of his political fiiith ; 
and he would be unwurthy to be named as the true successor of 
Washington, — an honur w hich our own limes and all j)osterity will 
award him, did lie deny this great and fundamental, repid)lican, trutli. 

Sir, I had rather be the most forlorn j)auper, than a very Cni'sus, 
and a slave ; not the slavery of the body do I mean Sir, that can be 
borne when the mind is free; but I mean the slavery of tlie mind ; a 
i)oor, cringing, trembling minion of man in "brief authority." Thank 
Heaven! such is not my fnto ; but on the contrary, I have been a.^so- 
ciatcd with a genlletnan whom it is my pride to honor, and my happi- 
ness to call my friend. 

As a Republican, from jirinciple and not for hire, I go with my 
jiarty on all occasions, where that party is honestly led ; reserving to 
myself, always, the right of requiring c.\planatiuns of any course 
which looks suspicious, or of any transactions wearing the appoarance 
of di.-hoiior. Above all, I will never sinrcnder the ri^'ht of tloing 
pistice to my politiciil adversaries; and, whenever they sink tin; poli- 
tician in the patriot, of boldly e.xjjrcssing my hearty applause. There- 
fore, Sir, allow me to give af a sentiment — 

The Hon. Daniel Webster:— Who, here, alihongh an opponent of 
the Administration, nobly anri eloqiiendy >u>tained ii.-> measures, when 
some of, its pretended friemls slunk auay l» watch the vano of popu- 
lar opinion. 



164 

If anything more was requisite to raise against me the wrath 
of the Collector and his confederates to " a white heat" I accom- 
plished it on this occasion. My object was, not only to do jus- 
tice to Mr. Webster, but to give an example to the other Custom 
House Officers of the maintenance of independent, opinion, on 
the day most appropriate for its assertion. I had long groaned 
under the " espionage" of party tyranny. 

At this time, I am with all my heart, in favour of Mr. Web- 
ster's election to the Presidency. I am prepared to go to any 
corner of the United States, where my services would be most 
useful, and there, for the mere necessaries of the humblest life, 
advocate his election in a public journal. I feel that I owe such 
a reparation to the country. But, at the same time, I must con- 
fess my conviction, that it is a hopeless, although an honorable 
and most praise-worthy object. There can be no question in the 
mind of every sincere patriot and good man, that no statesman 
is so clearly entitled to this distinguished station, or who wo'.ild 
do so much honor to the country as its Chief Magistrate, as 
Daniel Webster. But I repeat, to me his prospects seem hope- 
less. And I most solemnly declare my conviction, that the union 
of all the Whigs in favour of Judge White, is the only possible 
plan for defeating the election of Van Buren. 

The Judge is an honest man,— a sincere patriot, and a devout 
Christian. Not a great— but, I verily believe, a very good man. 
He is less rash but more inflexible than Jackson ; more enlighten- 
ed and refined, less accessible to flattery and importunity ;— and 
more inclined to decide upon the principles of justice, than of 
party. A safe President, who like Monroe, would let the Gov- 
ernment move along like an "Accommodation Stage" — lazily, 
but securely. " In medio tutissimus ibis." Webster, if we can, — 
the Judge, if we must! 

But they who conceive that the New-Yorker is not the j)vomi- 
nent candidate, reckon without their host. He will be, unques- 
tionably, nominated by the office-holders' Convention in May. 
Now, no statesman seems to have appreciated the vast power and 
influence of the immense corps of ofiice-holders, but Mr. Cal- 
houn. He declares they amount to 100,000! Is it not known to 
every reflecting man conversant with society, that each of these 
100,000 public officers must have the power to influence the 



165 

votes of 3 or 4 of his relations. IVienils, or ilependenfs ? Then 
we have the formidable number of 500,000 voter-, sustainin*^ the 
candidate of tliat Convention. In 18-28, Gen. Jackson received 
650,000 votes, and was elected by only 150.000 majority. There 
can be no mistake in the assertion, that all the Custom House 
officers, — the Land oflicers, and the Post-masters, will };o for 
Van Buren ; and probably most of the pensioners, and other pub- 
lic servants. He is, (I repeat.) and will be, the ojice-holders' 
man. For, let my reader reflect a moment, that if a single offi- 
cer should avow an opposition to the regularly nominated " dem- 
ocratic'- candidate, he and his family are immediately (in nine 
cases out of ten,) reduced to beggary by his dismission from 
office. His independence is completely destroyed, and whatever 
may be his private opinions, he must act with the party which 
supports him. The Bdl originated in the Senate, to rescue hinv 
from this debasins: servitude, was defeated bv the Van Buren 
party in the House. And it never will be suffered to pass, until 
after the election of 1836. I know many an officer in the Boston 
Custom House opposed to Van Buren who will vote for him, be- 
cause he cannot sacrifice his family. 

How shall we counteract this paralyzing influence ; what is the 
antidote to this bane of our national independence I My plan is 
as follows : — 

1st. There shall be opened over the whole extent of the United 
States, a W hig subscription, the produce of which shall be con- 
secrated to indemnify every public officer, for the loss of the 
emoluments of which he may be deprived, before the 1st January, 
IBSr.for his conscientious resistance to the illegal action of power. 

2d. This subscription shall be collected in all the cities, towns, 
and villages of the U. States, where three citizens at least, shall 
assemble in private Committee to direct the operations. 

3d. Every public oflicer. who shall be dismissed from ofiice for 
political ottences, shall receive 500 dollars for otie year, so that 
he may be enabled to engage in some other business, without the 
dread of immediate suflering. 

4tli. Each Committee, in every State, shall appoint C«)unty and 
Town Committees, who shall return the subscriptions in the 
County to the Treasurer of the State Committee, who will, by 
the vote of that Committee, disburse the money. 



166 

5th. The receipts shall be published in the Whig newspapers, 
with the names of all the County and iState Committees, and the 
subscribers. 

By such an arrangement as the above, the power and influence 
of Van Buren would be reduced to nothing within six months, 
among the office-holders. 

But this is not all that the crisis requires. The peculiar 
blessings which a republican form of Government have poured 
out from a full horn on this favoured country, originated in the 
principles and habits of the Plymouth Pilgrims. To restore 
them, we must return to the practice of their virtues, — their self- 
denial, prudence and economy, and deep dependence on and 
reverence of the Deity. Luxury must be abandoned, the vain 
"adorning of the body" despised; the feasts, and balls, and 
midnight revels, be held no more. 

The youth of Prussia, when that State was writhing under the 
grasp of Napoleon, entered into a combination to free their 
country, at all hazards. They restricted themselves to the 
meanest food ; they engaged in the most athletic exercises ; they 
denied themselves all enervating luxuries; they dressed in the 
plainest and cheapest clothing, and they encouraged manly and 
warlike contentions. AVe must do the same. We must form 
"■ Filgrim Societies^''' embracing the religion, the self-denial, the 
endurance, the hardihood, the temperance, and the warlike spirit 
of our ancestors. We shall have occasion for the exercise of all 
these virtues. For if despotism is ever established in this coun- 
try ; if ever a material change in our republican Constitution is 
submitted to, it will be by the consent of New-England. 

Without her consent, the spark kindled by the Pilgrims can 
never be extinguished ! 



Conclusion. 
" Hear me — for my Cause." 



My young reader, one word before we part. The generatiou 
to which yoii belong will witness the re-establishincnt of the 
Constitution or its final overthrow. It cannot be re-established 
without most arduous elVorts, nor will it be overthrown without a 
desperate struggle. Prepare yourself to act in cither event, 
" with all your soul, and with all your heart, and with all your 
mind." First, by understanding what the Constitution means, 
and next, by an unconquerable resolution that not " one jot or 
tittle" of it shall pass away. The united wisdom of the wisest 
men, of the wisest generation which this country ever knew, 
framed it; amidst infinite perils, and under a patriotic excite- 
ment which called into action the whole energy of the brightest 
minds. It has ever since been the admiration of the world, and 
the " ark of the covenant" to all the worshippers of freedom. 
It has made us a great people ; the peculiar favorites of Ili'aven; 
a name and a praise throughout the eartli. And its n);iiiitenaiire, 
in its original purity, and as its framers designed that it slu-uld 
be construed, will advance human happiness, liberty, and moral 
elevation, to a pitch not within the power of men to conceive 
But if a single article of that great charter of the world's eman- 
cipation is suffered to be violated, and tlie violation is submitted 
to, there is an end of popular sovereignty, of moral and intel- 
lectual advancement, of the world's l;.s liopi^ ! 

And you, my young reader, are one of those who must decide 
this momentous question. The votes you dejxisit in tlie ballot- 
box, within the next ten years, raise anew the standard of the 
revolution, or bring a night of despotism over coining ages. 

Let me pray you to procure as soon as posible, the most ap- 
proved commentaries on the Constitution of the U. States; such 
as the Federalist — Story's Commentary, and Mr. AVebster's 
Speeches. Study them diligently, and remember, that it requires 
study to understand the form and theory of our Governn>ent. 



168 

The simplest Government is a despotism, where all the powers 
are exercised by a sinj;Ie tvrant, who holds the purse and the 
sword, and gives the law from his own mouth.. The nearer the 
approximation to free Government, the more intricate become its 
forms. Ours is a *' system of checks and balances," complicated, 
but the more free on that account. Tories and demagogues, will 
tell you that it is all as '■ plain as a pikestaff;" but the design of 
the first is. that their President should expound it as he pleases; and 
of the other, ti)at it may be construed to favour their selfish 
projects. It must be studied, examined and re-examined, and 
the great political luminaries who have shed light upon it must 
be diligently consulted. Hear Mr. Webster, the apostle of tiie 
Constitution. 

" I confess, said Mr. W. that when I speak of the Constitution, I 
feel a burning zeal which prompts me to pour out my whole heart. 
What is the Constitution ? It is the band which binds together twelve 
million brothers? What is its history — who made it? Monarchs, 
crowned head;*, lords or emperors? No! it was none of these. The 
Constitution of the U. States, the nearest approach of mortal to Su- 
preme wisdom, was the work of men who purchased liberty with 
their blood, but who found, that without organization, freedom was 
not a blessing. They framed it, and the people in their intelligence 
adopted it. And what has been its history for forty years? Has it 
trodden down any man's rights? Has it circumscribed the liberty of 
the press ? Has it stopped the mouth of any man ? Has it held us up 
as objects of disgrace abroad? Quite the reverse. It has given us 
character abroad, and when with Washington at its head it went forth 
to the world, this young country at once became the most interesting 
and imposing in the circle of civilized nations. How is the Constitu- 
tion of the U. States regarded abroad? Why as the last hope of lib- 
erty among men. Wherever you go, you find the U. States held up 
as an example by the advocates of freedom. The mariner no more 
looks to his compass or takes his departure by the sun than does the 
lover of liberty think of taking his departure without reference to the 
Constitution of the U. States." 

Such expositions are drawn from the "fountain of living 
waters — "the sentiments of the patriots who framed this sacred 
instrument. Drink deeply at that fountain ; and when you have 
imbibed its spirit, resolve, that your country shall continue to be 



169 

governed by the original principles of the compact, or that you 
will not /ire under any other I Ilemenibcr the resolution of the 
old Plymouth Pilgrims, '^ Libertij, without a country, rather than 
a countri/ icithnut libertij.'" 

What! shall ancient Greece and Rome, before the free light 
of Christianity had dawned upon them, in the comparatively dark 
ages of the world, have produced "armies of martyrs*' in the 
cause of freedom ; and We, with the accumulated experience of 
nineteen centuries of political and christian knowledge, suffer 
ourselves to sink unresistingly into slavery, and the hope of the 
earth to be made a desert by the red hand of despotism ? 

No ! you indignantly exclaim, may Heaven's lightning blast 
me before I consent to such a sacrilege ! You say well. Feel so 
always, and act accordingly. Remember, that if the beacon 
fires of liberty, which our fathers kindled in this country, and 
which now enlighten all the seekers after freedom througliout the 
world, are once put out, and another dark age of despotism and 
ignorance descends upon the earth, centuries will not disperse 
the darkness. 

You, my young reader, may suppose that you act in this awful 
crisis merely for yourself. Dismiss the thought. The vote you 
hold in your hand goes to doom a hundred years ; and millions 
of your fellow-beings who shall come after you, to relentless 
slavery, or to usher them into the "glorious liberty of the cross;" 
of order, law, and national and individual happiness. If you 
thoughtlessly deposit that vote in favour of the powers who are 
now striving to overthrow the Constitution of our beloved coun- 
try, you figlit against God, and his beneficent designs for the hap- 
piness of his creatures. 

My young friends, I clasp you by the hands, and bid you— 
farewell I 



22 



APPENDIX. 



A friend has suggested the propriety of stating particulariy, the mode 
of "killing off" Postmasters, &c. I presume it has not changed since 
1829, and therefore the following "Recipe" will be useful in every 
town of the United States, If you wish to be Postmaster of the town 
where you live, and it contains half a dozen Jacksonnien, (and if not, 
take some adjoining town which does,) they must subscribe a petition to 
the Postmaster General, setting forth that " the present Postmaster of the 

town of M , is now and always has been, opposed to the glorious 

Administration of the father of his country the immortal Jackson, 
that the petitioners are good and true Jacksonmen, and earnestly de- 
sire that the town of M may be exonerated of an opposition Post- 
master, and experience the salutary influence of " Refortn." And 
they beg leave to recommend Mr. A. B. an original Jacksonian, and 
a highly influential and respectable citizen, to fill the important station 
of Postmaster of the town of M in the place of the present Post- 
master." This Petition is taken to Washington by some noted Jack- 
sonian, who calls at the General Post Office, sees the Postmaster 
General, assures him the signatures are genuine, and the facts set 
forth therein true, and that a change in the Post office of the town of 
M would be beneficial to the '^ cause." Upon which the Post- 
master General writes with his pencil the word "change"'^ on the 
back of the Petition, sends it to the Cleik of Appointments — and, in 

a trice, the head of the Postmaster of the town of M flies from 

his shoulders. 

This is the mode where despatch is required, and was the way my 
five Postmasters were killed off". But, sometimes the doomed Post- 
master receives a letter from the Clerk of Appointments, containing 
the very reasonable request, that " he immediately show cause why 
he should not be dismissed from his said office." Now, as the aston- 



171 

ished Postmaster is informed of no charges against liim, and id con- 
scious of no fault, he is usually " most condemnedlij'" puzzled to an- 
swer this letter, He don't know how to " shoio cause'" why he should 
not be dismissed from office ; and the only answer he can think of, is 
" cause I did'' nt.''' He therefore " dies, and makes no sign." After 
pondering some ten days, on the strangeness of the request, secretly 
consulting his most judicious friends, losing his appetite and his sleep, 
and turning yellow with perplexity and dismay, he at last sees one of 
his neighbours approaching his office with a wheel-barrow, at a rapid 
march. He enters, produces an order from the General Post Office 
for the delivery of the property of the United States in his possession, 
seizes the mail bags, papers, &-c. chucks them into the wheel-burrow, 
pushes off with them to his own quarters, and the next morning the 
confounded inhal)itant3 of the town of M , rub their eyes at per- 
ceiving attached to the door of Mr. A. B's. shop, the impressive 
words— "Post Office!" 

The operation of a Post Office " Reform," in a small country 
vlllaijc, is one of the most amusing spectacles I ever witnessed. 
There is a kind of slight o'hand and mystery about it, which for 
months presses on the hearts of the villagers like an incubus. They 
go aljoutthe streets in a brown stud}', and seem to be saying to them- 
selves, "E'cod! — there is a United States Government, or I'm 
darned !" 

For so beautiful is the system of government continued by our wise 
forefathers, that while the General Government of the United States 
poises and holds together the whole, no man in the country ever feels 
its direct action, (when it is peacefully and constitutionally adminis- 
tered,) excepting in the appointment of a Postmaster of his village. 
And it is oidy by some irregularity in the system, that he becomes 
conscious of subjection to higher powers than his own paternal State 
Government. 

It is like the solar system, which is upheld by infinite wisdom, good- 
ness and [)ower. A moment's suspension in the action of either of 
these influences, and " Chaos would come again." 



B 

Many of the Temi)orance Societies require the members to pledge 
themselves to abstain from the use of Wine! Wine, — which Christ 



172 

twice consecrated, viz: — by his Jirst miracle, by which he changed 
water (the peculiar favorite of these fanatics,) into wine, and at the 
" last supper," where he made it the emblem of his blood shed for 
mankind ! 



c. 

I must make an exception in favour of my old and excellent friend, 
Col. Loring. A more active and zealous republican, and a more 
benevolent and accomplished gentleman, never lived. He is about 
the last of the " Old Romans." 



JxJ-J 1^'J0'%^ 



v^ 




'/2^/zy^/*^' 



"t?-^^ 



tJW.M1llI»»»l«—W 



POLITICAL REMINISCENCES, 



ISCLODINO 



A SKETCH 



OF THE 



©si^aBi ^mm "mmwmwE 



OF THE 



ii 



STATESMAN PARTY" 



OF 



BOI^TOIV. 



b^ 



BY 



JOHN BARTON DERBY, 

LATE 

DEPUTY SURVEYOR OF THE CUSTOMS. 



"They (i. e. the office holders) love Gold."— f7/ofrf. 

" Their God is gold and their Religion pelf."— /i.'r. Painr. 



BOSTON: 

Printed for the Author, by Homer & Pahner, 
Congress Street. 



■n '»« n » » , Y«» T i B 



! 

Entered according to Aet of Congress in the year 1834, by J. B. DERBY, in the Clerk's 
office of the District Court of Massachusetts. 



[ICTTO BE CONTINUED] 



In consequence of the numerous subjects to be treated 
of, it has been found necessary to extend the limits of the 
work farther than was at first contemplated, and as consid- 
erable anxiety has been manifeste J to see it, it has been 
thought advisable to issue it in two parts. The second num- 
ber is now in press and will be published uilh all possible 
expedition. It will contain a continuation of The Tax — The 
Conspiracy — Beauties of Jacksonism — Removal of the De- 
positea — Antidotes — and Conclusion. 



i 



(r?-SECOr¥I> PART 



OF 



J. B. DERBY'S 



POLITICAL REMINISCENCES, 



IllCLDi>IKa 



A SKETCH 



or THI 



©:Ei(^iir ^ar® mis«i^©si' 



or THB 



STATESMAN PARTY. 



IliiJ* The reader will recollect that the first part ended rather 
abruptly at page 96, iu the middle of a sentence of the chapter headed 
" A Tax." Those who have the first number can refer to it. For 
the information of those who have not read that number, it may be 
well to copy the last paragraph of page 96, which is subjoined : — 

An assessment on the public officers was therefore finally declared for the payment of 1230 
dollars per year, the interest of twenty thousand, a debt due from the Postmaster to the Col- 
lector and his associates. It amounted to about 5 per cent, of their salaries; or rather I 
conelude so, because (he annual sum demanded of General M'Neil was in that ratio. The 
General was called upon by Mr. J. P. Eobinson, the Secretary of the first meetinii, and the 
agent for the collection, to pay 150 dollars per annum. He refused. In a week or two 
afterwards, Mr. RobinaOn called again, and stated that 125 dollars would be considered 
sufficient. The General declined paying any thing. I was invited, but peremtorily ex- 
pressed my disgust at the whole project. Two or three of the under officers refused. They 
were told by Eobinson that the Collector approved of the scheme and they would lose - — — 

(Cy SEE PAGE 97.) 



ICJ* The Author owes an apology to the PubUc 
for the delay which has attended the publication of 
the 2d Part of his Political Reminiscences. Much 
of the time which has elapsed since the appearance 
of Part 1st, he has been under the advice of his 
physician — too ill to engage in any kind of labour. 
And this fact must excuse the many faults of a 
literary character, which the reader will readily dis- 
cover in the book. He proposes to publish soon, 
at Boston, a political newspaper, entitled " The 
Plain Dealer," which will be for sale at the 
Book Stores. It will not contain any advertise- 
ments ; nor will subscriptions for it be received. Its 
motto will be 

" Ne'er doubt 

" T/iis— when I speak, I don't hint, b\it speak out." 

J. B. D. 









.ic)' jp. ,;>;-• > 






's^:^^ >^-) >"> ^^"'-^ 


















Vi> >1 






.^jr>:::s> ^3>^£> _^ ^ 



wmrMm- y^WO ':^f^' 












3.>^ 



m 









> >^ 











ONGRESS 




